BELLINGHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Bellingham, Washington

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING

 OF THE

 BELLINGHAM SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

September 1, 2005

The Bellingham School Board of Directors met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., September 1, 2005, in the Board Room of the Administration Building. Prior to the regular meeting, there was executive session at 6:30 p.m. The purpose of the executive session was negotiations.

Present: Directors Steve Schoenfeld, Ann Whitmyer, President Elaine Lynch, Superintendent Dale Kinsley and recorder Nancy Merry. Directors Ken Gass and Jeff Haggen were excused.

At 7:00 p.m. Elaine Lynch moved to begin executive session; Ann Whitmyer seconded. At 7:30 p.m. Elaine Lynch moved to regular session; Ann Whitmyer seconded.

At 7:35 p.m. President Elaine Lynch called the regular meeting to order.

CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS:

Steve Schoenfeld moved and Ann Whitmyer seconded approval of the consent agenda. The motion carried unanimously.

Minutes

Action on the minutes of the August 11, 2005 Executive Session and the August 11, 2005 School Board meeting.

Investments

Action on investments in accordance with Resolution 13-88.

  GENERAL FUND

  CAPITAL PROJECTS

  DEBT SERVICE

  ASB FUND

  PRIVATE PURPOSE TRUST FUND

Expenditures and Payroll

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

(Tabled from August 11, 2005 meeting due to lack of a quorum of eligible voters.)

Expenditures and Payroll

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

Personal Services Contract

• Christine Moore-Attebery to provide services for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing and Speech Language programs during the 2005–2006 school year.
• ndividuals to serve as foreign language interpreters on an as-needed basis during the 2005–2006 school year as per attached list.

Out of State Travel

• Debbie Granger to attend and present at the National Tech Prep Conference in Orlando, Florida, September 29 through October 1, 2005.
• Ron Cowan to attend the Association of School Business Officials 91 st Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, October 20–25, 2005.
• Stewart Mhyre to attend the Association of School Business Officials 91 st Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, October 20–25, 2005.

Contracts

• Work Study Agreement between the District and Western Washington University for the 2005–2006 school year.
• Work Study Agreement between the District and Whatcom Community College for the 2005–2006 school year.
• Work Study Agreement between the District and Bellingham Technical College for the 2005–2006 school year.

REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:

School Board Reports

Steve Schoenfeld, Ann Whitmyer, and Elaine Lynch all attended the School Board Retreat on September 1 as well as the luncheon for new teachers on August 30.

Lynch noted two upcoming events:

• Bellingham School District Board of Directors is hosting a WSSDA dinner and meeting on October 6 at Bellingham High School.
• Back to School Breakfast on September 6 at 7:00 a.m. at Bellingham High School.

Superintendent's Announcements/Report

Dale Kinsley introduced Instructional Technologies and Library Director Ann Reed.

Activities for starting school are well underway with administrators having a very successful Advance on August 24, 25, and 26. Orientation for new teachers took place on August 30 and 31; and September 1 was a Learning Improvement Day. On Tuesday, September 6, the District and Bellingham Public School Foundation will co-host a Back-to-Breakfast for all District staff. The first day of school is Wednesday, September 7, 2005.

Kinsley thanked T-Mobile for their donation of office furniture.

Audience

• Tom Kunesh addressed the Board about the need for funding for middle school electives.
• Ben Kunesh, a middle school student, spoke about less opportunity to take electives at the middle school level.

REPORTS:

2005 WASL Results

Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Susan Zoller reported on the results of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) taken in the spring of 2005 by 4 th , 7 th and 10 th graders in math, reading, and writing; and 5 th , 8 th , and 10 th graders in science. Since 1996–97 when the first WASL test were given, the District has intentionally aligned the curriculum, added new resource materials, and focused on developing powerful instructional strategies. As a result, test results have consistently improved each year and 2004–05 was not an exception. District results indicate increases in the percentage of students meeting standards at all grades, in all subjects, and at all schools with the sole exception of 8 th grade science which decreased slightly. Zoller indicated an increased focus will be given to this area.

ACTION ITEMS:

Policy/Procedure 3440, Nutrition and Physical Fitness

The Board heard a first reading on Policy and Procedure 3440, Nutrition and Physical Fitness at the June 23, 2005 School Board meeting . This new policy and procedure was written to comply with legislation that requires school districts adopt policies describing nutrition programs, food service, vending services, fitness and nutrition education programs, and to create a wellness policy. Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Susan Zoller chaired a Fitness and Nutrition Task Force created to review existing food, nutrition and fitness programs and make recommendations for changes based on the new legislation. Since the first reading, Superintendent Kinsley met with PTA/PTO/PTSA presidents to discuss the draft policy and procedures. Based on feedback from Board members, parents and staff, revisions have been made in the policy and procedure. The changes encourage safe and nutritious practices for food brought into school outside of the District food service program, but do not require specific practices. In addition, District staff are required to collect information annually from staff, parents and students about nutrition and fitness issues. This information will be provided to the Board and will be used to evaluate the impact of the educational components and to modify programs, as needed.

Ann Whitmyer moved and Steve Schoenfeld seconded the motion to approve Policy 3440, Nutrition and Physical Fitness. Discussion followed regarding the need to clarify wording on the Procedure dealing with safe food handling guidelines. Ann Whitmyer amended the motion to add clarity about staff having a food handler's permit. Steve Schoenfeld seconded the motion. The amendment carried unanimously. President Lynch then called for a vote on the original motion, as amended. The motion carried unanimously. Lynch thanked the members of the Task Force for their work.

Collective Bargaining Agreement with Bellingham Education Association

Ann Whitmyer moved and Steve Schoenfeld seconded the motion to approve the Collective Bargaining Agreement with Bellingham Education Association. The Agreement, which was ratified by the BEA members on August 31, 2005, is effective September 1, 2005 through August 31, 2007. The motion carried unanimously. Kinsley thanked both the BEA negotiation team and the District team comprised of Nora Klewiada, Susan Zoller, Gordon Grissom, Tom Venable, and Chuck Foster for their work in reaching an agreement. Elaine Lynch acknowledged the presence of Mary Lindsey, a member of the BEA team, and thanked both teams for their work.

Task Force on K–12 Fine Arts Curriculum and Elective Offerings

Superintendent Dale Kinsley proposed establishing a task force to review the K–12 fine arts curriculum and assess elective offerings in the fine arts at the middle school level. The task force would serve as an advisory body to the Superintendent and Board on the following concerns:

• The alignment of K–12 fine arts curriculum with state EALRS
• Equity, sustainability, and balance of academic and fine arts elective offerings at the middle schools
• Suggestions and/or proposals for improvements in curriculum and/or program offerings.

Kinsley proposed a 15-members task force to include five parents/community members; five teachers from both the fine arts and other subjects; and five administrators including a district facilitator. The task force will meet throughout the 2005–2006 school year and make a final report to the superintendent and Board in May 2006.

Steve Schoenfeld moved and Ann Whitmyer seconded the motion to approve establishing a K–12 Fine Arts Curriculum and Elective Offerings Task Force. The motion carried unanimously. Elaine Lynch thanked Superintendent Kinsley for putting together this Task Force.

Permission to Call for Bids

Ann Whitmyer moved and Steve Schoenfeld seconded the motion to call for bids for non-carbonated beverages for the food service program. The motion carried unanimously.

Personnel Recommendations

Steve Schoenfeld moved and Ann Whitmyer seconded the motion approving the personnel recommendations as presented.

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m.