BELLINGHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Bellingham, Washington

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING

OF THE

BELLINGHAM SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

October 12, 2000

The Bellingham School Board of Directors met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., October 12, 2000, in the Board Room of the Administration Building.  Prior to the regular Board meeting there was an Executive Session at 6:30 p.m. Purpose of Executive Session – negotiations and personnel matters.

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

At 6:38 p.m. Whitmyer moved to begin Executive Session; Leu seconded. At 7:20 p.m. President David Blair made the move to regular session.

At 7:30 p.m. President David Blair called the meeting to order.

CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS:

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

Minutes

Action on the minutes of the September 28 School Board meeting.

Investments

Action on investments in accordance with Resolution 13-88.

                 GENERAL FUND

                                        $346,000.00               LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                        $169,000.00               LGIP, withdrawal, October 6, 2000

                  CAPITAL PROJECTS

                                          $30,300.00                LGIP, investment, September 29, 2000

                                          $59,000.00                LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                            $3,557.34                LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                        $319,000.00                LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                  DEBT SERVICE

                                        $165,000.00                 LGIP, investment, September 29, 2000

                                          $40,000.00                 LGIP, investment, October 6, 2000

                  ASB FUND

                                          $17,500.00                 LGIP, investment, September 29, 2000

                                          $12,500.00                 LGIP, investment, September 29, 2000

                                               $300.00                 LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                               $300.00                 LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                          $18,000.00                 LGIP, withdrawal, September 29, 2000

                                            $9,400.00                 LGIP, withdrawal, October 6, 2000

                  TRANSPORTATION VEHICLE

                                        $103,500.00                 LGIP, investment, September 29, 2000

Expenses and Payroll

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

           GENERAL FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                          9/08/00                  $224,835.48

                                                                    9/15/00                    575,337.48

                                                                    9/22/00                    186,402.29

                                                                    9/29/00                    223,771.91

                                               Total General Fund              $1,210,347.16

          CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                          9/15/00                 $554,532.96

                                                                    9/29/00                   406,567.54

                                              Total Cap. Proj. Fund              $961,100.50

          ASB FUND

                    ACCTS PAY:                        9/15/00                   $54,100.31

                                                                    9/29/00                     40,805.54

                                              Total ASB Fund                         $90,905.85

                                                                    BHS                        $40,909.02

                                                                    SHS                        $47,825.04

                                                                    SQHS                       $5,299.30

                                                                    FMS                            $336.63

                                                                    SMS                            $375.00

                                                                    WMS                          $160.77

          EXPENDABLE TRUST FUND

                                                                     9/8/00                         $200.00

                                                                   9/15/00                        1,487.10

                                                                   9/22/00                             35.70

                                                                   9/29/00                           587.50

                                             Total Exp. Trust Fund                  $2,310.30

         PAYROLL                                                                    $4,940,857.40

Personal Services Contracts:

• Nadezhda Bespalova and Kirsten Shore to serve as foreign language interpreters on as-needed basis during the 2000-2001 school year.
• Robert Warnecke to provide interim supervisory support for the Transportation Department between October 2, and November 17, 2000.
• Sue Lingbloom to provide support for implementation of the middle school report card during the 2000-2001 school year.
• Cynthia Hartle to direct the Children’s Choir at Happy Valley Elementary School beginning October 2000, and continuing through May 2001.
• Cynthia Minker to serve as a pianist for the Roosevelt Elementary choir during the 2000-2001 school year.
• Bill Attebery to manage the high school COPS grant between August 31, 2000 – July 31, 20001.
  

Contracts:

• Agreement for services between Kulshan Supported Employment and Bellingham School District for the 2000-2001 school year.
• Agreement for services between Current Industries and Bellingham School District for the 2000-2001 school year.
• Agreement for services between Cascade Vocational Services and Bellingham School District for the 2000-2001 school year.

Notice of Completion

Acceptance of Network Infrastructure Project.

REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:

School Board Reports

Lynch has been participating in mock job interviews at Squalicum and Sehome this past two weeks. She also reported on the Partnership for Learning luncheon on October 11, highlighting a program that encourages employers to ask for high school transcripts. Lynch is involved in a speaker’s bureau for Partnership for Learning to present information about that program to local service groups.

Leu reported on the WSSDA Multicultural Advisory Team.

Whitmyer also attended the Partnership for Learning luncheon. She provided information from that meeting regarding a report from a project on excellence in teaching that will be released in November.

Superintendent’s Announcements/Reports

Dr. Kinsley shared a flyer from a program that is being held at Fairhaven Middle School in the evenings from October 14-26. Kinsley stated that the District and Fairhaven do not endorse or have any part in the event. The group followed the appropriate rental policy process.

Kinsley reported on the turn lane improvement project at Squalicum High School. The $52,000 project is now complete and will improve morning and afternoon traffic circulation at the lower part of McLeod Road.

Dr. Kinsley recognized Bellingham Kiwanis for donating $1,200.00 and Diehl Ford for donating $1,596.00 to the District Family Information Centers. The money will be used to assist families that cannot afford school supplies.

Superintendent Kinsley reported OSPI project that is researching online assessments to place on teacher’s desktops. The District has been invited to participate and 6-7 teachers will be part of that project.

Kinsley sent out a message on behalf of the Board to food service staff in recognition of National School Lunch Week.

Earlier today, Dr. Kinsley attended the first meeting of the ESD Superintendents group on high school programming. The group will meet monthly and will focus on high school programs and resources and the upcoming certificate of mastery exam.

On November 28-29 District Gates Grant recipients will send teams to a statewide high school reinvention conference. Dr. Kinsley stated that there is an opening for a Board member if someone would like to attend.

The WSSDA Annual Conference will be held November 16-18 in Spokane.

REPORTS:

Class Size Reduction

Deputy Superintendent Susan Zoller reported on the use of additional funds to reduce elementary class sizes for the 2000-2001 school year. The state Better Schools Program provided 7.2 FTE staff and approximately $60,000 in addition funding. The District utilized these resources to provide 1.2 FTE for support for the July-August 2000 summer school and 6.0 FTE in additional staffing to reduce elementary class size in grades K-2. The $60,000 was used to support an elementary extended day program that began this year at each elementary school. Four additional positions were added with funding from the federal Class Size Reduction Grant.

Together for Students

Northwest ESD 189 Superintendent Jerry Jenkins gave an overview of the ESD and the services that are provided for the students and districts within this region.

ACTION ITEMS:

Approval of High School Textbooks

Leu moved and Gass seconded approval of high school textbooks for computer programming, and physics/chemistry/geology/meteorology/astronomy. The motion carried unanimously. The materials have been available for review in the Curriculum office since the September 28 Board meeting.

First Reading of Health and Fitness Curriculum

Curriculum Director Wendy Barrett and committee members, Connie Kelley, Marc Whitlock, Suzanne Marchisio, and Carol Jimeno presented the Heath and Fitness/Physical Education Curriculum Guide. Several District committees made up of teachers, parents, and community members developed the guide. These Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) for Health and Fitness were approved in 1997 and revised in 1998. The EALRs address four areas related to health and fitness: active lifestyle, health knowledge and skills, influencing factors, and health and fitness planning. The learning outcomes and critical content are aligned with the Washington State Essential Academic Learning Requirements and National Standards for Physical Education and Family and Consumer Science.

First Reading of Technology Standards for all Students

Nancy Messmer, Director of Library/Media/Technology, presented the Technology Standards for all Students for a first reading. The Technology Standards were written by a group of educators from across the District. The group reviewed current student goals and studied expectations from other school districts and national groups. The proposed standards cover five areas for all students in grades K-12:

• basic technology operations and concepts
• responsible and ethical use
• effective and creative communication
• thinking, learning, and producing
• research, problem solving, and decision making

Committee members Penny Jewett and Carolyn Hinshaw reported about their experiences serving on the Learning Technologies Planning Committee.

Field Trip

Lynch moved and Whitmyer seconded the motion for approval concept of the middle school science field trip to California. The tentative dates scheduled for the trip are April 19-22, 2001, (Whatcom and Shuksan) and May 10-13, 2001 (Fairhaven and Kulshan). The motion carried unanimously.

Personnel Recommendations Approved

Whitmyer moved and Gass seconded the motion for approval of the personnel recommendations as presented. The motion carried unanimously.

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 9:05 p.m.