BELLINGHAM PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Bellingham, Washington

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING

OF THE

BELLINGHAM SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

November 19, 1998

The Bellingham School Board of Directors met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., November 19, 1998, in the Board Room of the Administration Building. Prior to the regular meeting, the Board met in Executive Session at 5:30 p.m. Purpose of the Executive Session – negotiations.

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

At 5:50 p.m. Whitmyer moved to begin Executive Session; Blair seconded. At 7:40 p.m. Whitmyer made the motion to move to regular session; Gass seconded.

At 7:41 p.m. President Elaine Lynch called the meeting to order.

CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS:

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

Minutes

Action on the minutes of the October 22, 1998 School Board meeting.

Investments

Action on investments in accordance with Resolution 13-88.

                  GENERAL FUND:

                                      $154,000.00                  LGIP, investment, October 23, 1998

                                      $380,500.00                  LGIP, investment, November 2, 1998

                                   $2,278,000.00                  LGIP, investment, November 9, 1998

                  CAPITAL PROJECTS

                                         $3,600.00                  LGIP, investment, October 23, 1998

                                         $2,400.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                         $1,100.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                       $45,700.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                       $12,600.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                     $125,000.00                  LGIP, withdrawal, November 4, 1998

                  DEBT SERVICE

                                     $302,000.00                  LGIP, investment, October 23, 1998

                                     $305,000.00                  LGIP, investment, November 2, 1998

                                  $1,804,000.00                  LGIP, investment, November 9, 1998

                  ASB FUND

                                      $20,000.00                   LGIP, investment, October 23, 1998

                                        $7,000.00                   LGIP, investment, October 23, 1998

                                           $200.00                   LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                      $11,200.00                   LGIP, withdrawal, October 30, 1998

                                        $7,300.00                   LGIP, investment, November 2, 1998

Expenses and Payroll

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

             GENERAL FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                  10/08/98                  $353,493.01

                                                            10/15/98                      10,160.61

                                                            10/23/98                    413,144.39

                                                            10/31/98                      19,828.74

                                        Total General Fund                   $796,626.75

             CAPITAL PROJECTS FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                   10/15/98                 $451,486.02

                                                             10/30/98                      64,540.20

                                      Total Cap. Proj. Fund                  $526,026.22

             ASB FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                   10/15/98                    $36,625.09

                                                             10/30/98                      40,822.72

                                              Total ASB Fund                     $73,447.81

                                                                   SHS                     $40,127.29

                                                                SQHS                     $30,133.06

                                                                  FMS                          $391.41

                                                                 KMS                       $1,494.57

                                                                WMS                       $1,241.48

              EXPENDABLE TRUST FUND

                  ACCTS PAY:                  10/15/98                         $392.07

                                                            10/23/98                         $633.29

                                    Total Exp. Trust Fund                      $1,025.36

              PAYROLL                                                          $4,188,605.17

Personal Services Contracts:

• Steve Paddock to provide tutoring services for students who require an alternative educational placement from August 11, 1998, through July 31, 1999.
• Kwang Oak Kim and Khang Nguyen to serve as interpreters on an as-needed basis during the 1998-99 school year.
• Cindy Minkler to serve as choir accompanist at Roosevelt Elementary during the 1998-99 school year.
• Theresa McDonald, Deborah Roth, Gavin Grant, and Adrienne Guay to serve as sign language interpreters on an as-needed basis for the 1998-99 school year.
• District staff to serve as administrator/proctor/assistants for Sehome and Squalicum PSATs.

Out-of-State Travel:

• Ted Czajkowski and Wendy Barrett to attend the ASCD National Conference, March 5-8, 1999, in San Francisco.
• Amy Cushman, Gwen Nyman, David Shockley, and Greg Newman to attend the Annual Conference of the National Council for Social Studies, November 19-22, 1998, in Anaheim, California.
• Gaye Lynn MacDonald to attend American School Food Service Association task force meeting in Alexandria, Virginia, November 5-6, 1998.
• Margo Montague and Marie Little to attend the TESOL Conference in New York, N.Y., March 8-13, 1999.
• Julie Jiminez and Paula McGrath to attend the California Kindergarten Conference in San Francisco, California, January 16-17, 1999.
• Chris Johnsen and Lori Thoreson to attend the TERC Leadership Institute in Cambridge, MA, November 12-14, 1998.
• Janice Smith and two students to attend the California Youth Wellness and Leadership Institute in San Diego, California, November 30 – December 1, 1998.

Interdistrict Agreement:

• Bellingham School District to provide services to Sedro-Woolley School District.

Surplus Property

Declaration of house at 1107 Lakeway Drive as surplus.

Resolution

Resolution 11-98 – to Extend Intergovernmental Agreement with Mt. Baker School District.

REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:

School Board Reports

Diaz, Gass, Whitmyer, Lynch, and Superintendent Kinsley participated in the WSSDA Annual Conference in Spokane November 12-14. The theme was “Strategies for Today’s Challenges: All Children Successful.” Whitmyer and Lynch attended a parent workshop by Dr. Q at Squalicum, sponsored by the School-to-Work consortium. Whitmyer was part of a group from Fairhaven Middle School that presented information on writing instruction at an AWSP conference. Whitmyer acknowledged District staff for their progressive writing program.

Lynch announced that the only Board meeting in December will be held on the 10th.

Superintendent’s Announcements/Report

Dr. Kinsley reported that approximately 250 parents attended the School-to-Work event with Dr. Q at Squalicum High School. Kinsley read a proclamation from Mayor Mark Asmundson recognizing November 15-21 as American Education Week. He also shared changes in Administrative Procedure #5295P to reflect the new federal requirements for random testing for positions requiring commercial driver’s licenses. The requirements were changed from 25% to 10%.

A committee has begun a review of the boundaries for middle schools. They will present proposed options to the Board and community by March 1999, for discussion and decision.

Superintendent Kinsley announced that he accepted a position on the Curriculum Committee for the Washington Education Leaders Academy. The committee will provide input for the development of curriculum for Summer Institutes to train K-12 principals and superintendents in effective use of technology in school settings.

Audience

Diann Pudell, 1325 Raymond St, President of Bellingham Association of School Employees (BASE) addressed the Board regarding bargaining issues for current contract negotiations.

REPORTS:

Learning Improvement Allocations for 1997-98

Assistant Superintendent Susan Zoller gave an overview of Learning Improvement Allocations (formerly SLIGS). Kenn Robinson, principal at Whatcom Middle School, reported about how these funds were used at his building during the 1997-98 school year. For the past fours years, schools have received this funding to support staff development to improve student performance in literacy and mathematics. The funds are allocated to each building based on student enrollment and are intended to provide support for teachers and instructional assistants. Learning Improvement Allocations will be a topic of concern during the upcoming legislative session.

1997-98 Annual Financial Report

Jim Stevens, Director of Business and Finance presented the 1997-98 District Financial Report. The District continues to use the District Budget Advisory Committee process to identify and prioritize budget needs and allocations. Seventy-three percent (73%) of the budget is received from the State and is driven by enrollment. District enrollment was up 68 students from 1996-97 for a total of 9,754 FTE students. Salaries and benefits consume the largest percentage of the budget (84%). The amount of funding for classroom-related activities has increased. Expendi­tures for teaching and teaching support increased to 72.41% from 71.57 the previous year.

ACTION ITEMS:

First reading of Policy/Procedures #2004 – School Accountability for Student Learning (Resolution 10–98)

The Board heard a first reading of Policy/Procedures #2004. This policy/procedures outlines District expectations for the school improvement/student learning process. Also included is Resolution 10-98 to establish the District’s three-year goals for fourth grade reading.

First Reading of Revised Policy # 2130 – Student Assessment and Testing

The Board heard a first reading of revisions to the Student Assessment and Testing Policy #2130. The policy outlines all current tests and assessments at the State and District levels. The Board requested more clarification in the language for special education.

Elementary Schools Long-Range Master Plan Approved

Blair moved and Gass seconded the motion to approve the Elementary Schools Long-Range Master Plan. The motion carried unanimously. Since the first reading of the draft plan in September, it was revised to recommend that new schools be considered when enrollment at existing schools reaches 400-450 students and that the plan be for a 10-year period rather than 12 years. Assistant Superintendent Greg Cowan introduced attending committee members Dave New, Rick Reed, Mindy Price, and Don Wilson. Dr. Kinsley acknowledged the 1½ years of work by Greg Cowan and the committee to develop the plan.

Revisions to the Capital Facilities Plan in Support of School Impact Fees

Blair moved and Gass seconded the motion to approve the revisions to the Capital Facilities Plan in Support of School Impact Fees. The motion carried unanimously. The plan was approved at the September 10 Board meeting; however, all the data was not available to calculate the muti-unit fee. The recommended fee for multiple-family units is $164.00 per unit.

Proposal to Establish a District Plan for Diversity

This item was tabled by the Board to allow additional time for study.

Silver Beach Trail

Gass moved and Whitmyer seconded acceptance of a proposal and easement with the City of Bellingham to develop a trail across District property at Silver Beach Elementary School. The motion carried unanimously.

Request for School Classification Waiver from WIAA

Gass moved and Whitmyer seconded the motion to support an appeal to WIAA to grant 3A athletic classifications for Squalicum High School for the next two school years (1999-2000 and 2000-2001) and for Bellingham High School for their opening in the 2000-2001 school year. The motion carried unanimously.

Call for Bids

Blair moved and Whitmyer seconded the motion for permission to call for bids for photocopier equipment. The motion carried unanimously.

Bid Award

Blair moved and Diaz seconded the motion to award the bid for selective demolition of Bellingham High School to Dawson Construction. 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.