Minutes
Quincy, Massachusetts – October 11, 2017
Regular Meeting of the Quincy School Committee
Regular Meeting
A regular meeting of the Quincy School Committee was held on Wednesday,
October 11, 2017 at the Coddington Building at 6:30 p.m. The Superintendent
called the roll and present were School Committee Chairman Mayor Thomas Koch,
Mr. James DeAmicis, Mrs. Kathryn Hubley, Ms. Barbara Isola, Mrs. Emily Lebo, and Mr. Paul Bregoli, Vice Chair.
Vice Chair Presiding
Also present were: Dr. Richard DeCristofaro, Secretary; Ms. Laura Owens,
Clerk; Ms. Janet Baglione, Ms. Lori Cahill, Ms. Kerri Connolly, Mr. Michael
Draicchio, Ms. Julie Graham, Dr. Beth Hallett, Mr. James Mullaney, Deputy
Superintendent Kevin Mulvey, Mrs. Maura Papile, Mrs. Erin Perkins, Ms.
Madeline Roy, Mr. Keith Segalla, Ms. Jessica Sikora, Ms. Bridget Vaughan;
Quincy Education Association President Allison Cox; Citywide Parents
Council Co-President Courtney Perdios; Quincy High School Student
Representative Timothy Nguyen and North Quincy High School Student
Representative Luke Molloy.
Mrs. Mahoney was absent.
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There was a moment of silence in memory of the victims of the Las Vegas tragedy
and also for former employee Wayne Mirick, Quincy Public Schools employee for
thirty five years, most recently as an Attendance Officer.
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Regular Meeting Minutes Approved
9.27.2017
Mr. DeAmicis made a motion, seconded by Mrs. Hubley to approve the Regular
Meeting minutes for September 27, 2017. On a voice vote, the ayes have it.
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Open Forum
John Rodephele requested coordination of next year’s meeting calendar so that
Planning Board and Conservation board meetings don’t overlap with School
Committee meetings.
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Superintendent's
Report
Dr. DeCristofaro opened the Superintendent’s Report with a review of the October
10 Professional Development afternoon for elementary and high school teachers.
Over 500 Academic Classroom and Program Teachers, plus Academic Support Staff members participated. Staff were able to choose from professional
development opportunities for enhancing technical skills, classroom instruction,
and supporting social emotional learning.
Upcoming Quincy Public Schools events include the Open House events for Grade
8 Students and Families at Quincy High School on Monday, October 23 and North
Quincy High school on Tuesday, October 24, both at 6:30 pm. The Point Webster
100th Anniversary will be held on November 18 at 2:00 pm. The Wollaston School
Harvest Festival will be held on Saturday, October 14 from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm.
A Pre-Kindergarten Parent Academy will be held on October 24 at 6:00 pm at
Central Middle School, in partnership with QPAC to Special Education.
North Quincy High School is the recipient of a Massachusetts Skills Capital Grant
Award of $138,000 Grant for the Engineering Program, thanks to Keith Segalla,
Principal Robert Shaw, and teacher Jessica Flaherty for their efforts in securing
this grant.
The Quincy Public Schools Health & Wellness Symposium will be held on
Wednesday, October 18 at the Tirrell Room at 3:00 pm. Principals, School Nurses,
and site-based Health & Wellness Team members will meet to share best practices
and set school wellness goals. This system-wide collaboration opportunity is
thanks to Rita Bailey and Maura Papile.
Quincy School~Community Partnership Events: SPLASH Learn to Swim with the
South Shore YMCA, which began this week and the upcoming Teacher Mini-Grants
Reception on November 2 at the Neighborhood Club. On October 13 at 3:30 pm,
representatives from TD Bank and Boston Celtics will be at Lincoln Hancock
Elementary School for the opening of the recently renovated Music Room, a
project that was completed in partnership with QCARE.
Due to the delayed release of MCAS 2.0 data by the Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education, School and Program Improvement Plan presentations have
been rescheduled into mid-November. A revised calendar of meeting dates was
shared with School Committee.
At the annual Professional Teacher Status reception, 50 teachers will be
recognized at the Bradford Library at Quincy High School on Thursday, October 12
at 3:00 pm. Thanks to Kevin Mulvey and the Human Resources staff.
Dr. DeCristofaro shared the October 1 Enrollment overview, highlights include
enrollment increased by 155 students this year, 99 of this increase are split
between the two high schools. No significant increases or decreases at the
elementary level, where class sizes are favorable with an average of 19-20
students per grade. At the middle school level, Atlantic, Point Webster, and
Sterling have increases of 20+ students. 89% of middle school classes are at 24 or
fewer students. At the high school level, 84% of sections have 25 or fewer
students. Science and foreign language class sizes are at 26 students or below, so
no issues with equipment or materials. Opportunities and Challenges based on
enrollment projections and building capacity overviews will be presented at the
February Facilities & Security Subcommittee meeting.
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Old Business
There was no Old Business on the Agenda.
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New Business
Program Improvement
Plan Presentation:
Literacy
Coordinator of English Language Arts Bridget Vaughan and Literacy Teacher Janet
Baglione presented the Literacy Program Improvement Plan, reviewing the
program goal of identifying and supporting students who struggle to acquire
foundational literacy skills. Students are identified at the Integrated Learning
Team meetings at each elementary school based on assessment results and overall
reading performance. Literacy teachers provide interventions to struggling
readers in Kindergarten through Grade 4, also known as Tier III students, who are
currently at risk for low reading achievement and require reading interventions to
accelerate student growth. Literacy teachers have a menu of instructional
interventions in the areas of Phonics, Phonemic Awareness, Fluency, Vocabulary,
and Comprehension.
In reflecting on last year’s goals, the first goal focused on reducing the number of
students requiring Tier 3 interventions. This goal was met for Grades 1 and 2, but
technically not for Kindergarten. Part of the issues is the number of different
subtests for DIBELS Next in Kindergarten. In Grade 3, the focus shifts from
learning to read and reading to learn and the DIBELS Next assessment only
measures reading fluency rate. The MAP Assessment is now in place to assist in
supporting the second goal, to increase the RIT scores by 10 points for both
Grades 2 and 3, which was met. The third goal was to create a uniform protocol
for the Integrated Learning Team Meeting and the team created a document in
collaboration with the Special Education and Student Support departments and
revised the Individual Accommodation Plan (ICAP).
For 2017-2018, the goal of decreasing Tier 3 students by 3% will be continued for
Grades K-2. The second goal is to increase the RIT scores on the MAP
Assessments through the implementation of Guided Reading and Close Reading
Strategies by 10 points. Professional Development to support these initiatives will
be provided in intervals throughout the year. The third goal is to continue to
collaborate with grade-level teachers, Special Education, and English Learner
teachers on more effective use of data and implementing mini-ILTs as needed
during the school year. The Literacy Team meets monthly to collaborate on
achievement of these goals and refine action steps.
Mrs. Lebo thanked the presenters, all of her questions were answered during the
presentation. Ms. Isola thanked the presenters as well, noting she is always struck
by the communication between the Literacy team, the classroom teachers, and the
other academic supports within each school, setting up our students for success.
The Literacy Team has been expanded far beyond the reductions of the lean
budget years and this is great to see.
Mr. Molloy asked what the range of the RIT scale is. Mrs. Baglione said the range
is normed for each grade level and are different for different times of the year.
Mr. Bregoli noted that the Literacy program has assisted with early interventions,
Mrs. Baglione said the goal is to close the literacy skills gap before Grade 2. At the
Kindergarten level, there is some push-in to the classroom, including all students
in an effort to identify students needing supports as soon as possible. Mr. Bregoli
asked if there are fewer Resource Room referrals as a result. Mrs. Baglione said
this varies from year to year, but the early Literacy supports assist with furthering
Resource Room interventions.
Dr. DeCristofaro thanked the presenters, the communication ensures that all
teachers are on the same instructional wavelength, providing the targeted
assistance to ensure success for all students.
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New Business
Program Improvement
Plan Presentation:
Early Childhood
Team Administrators Julie Graham and Kerri Connolly presented the Early
Childhood Program Improvement Plan, in service of the program’s mission of
providing enriching programs for young children identified with special needs as
well as their typically-developing peers. The curriculum meets the social,
emotional, cognitive, and developmental needs of our young children, the
foundation for life-long learning. Pre-Kindergarten classes range from 10 to 15
students, depending on whether they are integrated or Special Education
programs. In addition, Early Childhood encompasses the 755 Kindergarten
students in general education and special education classrooms. This is the 12th
year of free-Full-Day Kindergarten for Quincy Public Schools. All Kindergarten
classes are supported by a full-time Paraprofessional staff member and both
curriculum and assessments are common among all school sites.
Ms. Connolly presented a reflection on last year’s goals. The Kindergarten team
successfully implemented an electronic standards-based report card utilizing
ASPEN. The Pre-Kindergarten team was successful in their implementation of a
Developmental Checklist. In addition, the Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten
teams worked to align components of the Handwriting Without Tears Curriculum
within their current classroom practices and the Pre-Kindergarten team
participated in training for the administration of PreLAS, to assist with identifying
students with English Learner Education needs.
For 2017-2018, goals include training in the implementation of PBIS and Calm
Classroom in the Pre-Kindergarten setting and integrating this with current
classroom practices based on the MA Standards for Social and Emotional Learning
and Approaches to Play and Learning. Standards include self-awareness, selfmanagement, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsive decisionmaking. Goal 2 is for Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten teachers to utilize
strategies and materials from Foundations in Mathematics course to further
support student success in the content area of mathematics.
Pre-Kindergarten teacher Lori Cahill spoke about the continuity provided by the
common curriculum, which allows for maximum student support. The scope and
sequence ensures that students are prepared for Kindergarten at their
neighborhood schools. Collaboration among the staff at Della Chiesa ECC and
Snug Harbor ensures for fluidity; if students change schools or programs, they will
be able to transition into a familiar classroom routine and curriculum. The third
goal is for the Pre-Kindergarten team to provide opportunities to further develop
the collaboration between the home and school environments.
Ms. Isola asked if there is a correlation between the math manipulatives and
concept development. Ms. Graham said the kinesthetic connection is very
important in conceptual development. Ms. Isola enjoyed the Calm Classroom
video, mindfulness is very important, learning it young is wonderful.
Mr. Bregoli asked if the Pre-Kindergarten schedule has changed. Ms. Graham said
there is one classroom at each site that are full days Monday-Thursday or
Wednesday-Friday. All other integrated Pre-Kindergarten classes are half-day on
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
Mr. Molloy noted that he is a member of the first Full-Day Kindergarten cohort
who entered in 2006. He would like to see Calm Classroom at the high school level
and complimented having the video clips to support the program evidence.
Dr. DeCristofaro thanked both the presenters, their extraordinary collaboration
and professional development ensure that staff have an investment in the goals
and action steps. Dr. DeCristofaro thanked Public Buildings for the work in
creating the two new classrooms at Della Chiesa.
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New Business
MASC Conference
Delegate
Mrs. Hubley made a motion that she will represent the Quincy School Committee
at the Annual Meeting of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees.
The motion was seconded by Ms. Isola and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
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New Business
Fuel Efficient
Fleet Policy (Revision)
Mr. Bregoli made a motion to refer the revision of the Fuel Efficient Fleet Policy to
the Policy Subcommittee. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and on a voice vote,
the ayes have it.
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Additional Business
Mrs. Lebo announced that on September 5, 2017, the Joint Committee on
Education met at the State House to discuss a pending bill would allow for 100
minutes per week of recess to be counted as scheduled time on learning (20
minutes per day). House Bill H.235 and Senate Bill S.308; Ms. Owens will send
copies to all School Committee members.
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Communications
Upcoming meetings were announced: October 25, 2017 at Point Webster Middle
School at 6:30 p.m.; November 15, 2017 at the Coddington Building (Executive
Session at 6:00 pm, followed by the Regular Meeting at 6:30 pm); and December 6,
2017 at Central Middle School at 6:00 pm.
Subcommittee Meetings will be held on October 19, 2017 (Budget & Finance at
5:00 p.m.; Facilities & Security at 5:30 p.m.; and Policy at 6:00 pm); November 13,
2017 (Athletics at 5:00 pm and Teaching & Learning at 5:30 pm); November 14,
20, and 21, 2017 (Teaching & Learning, all at 5:00 pm).
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Reports of
Subcommittees
Mr. Bregoli noted that all School Committee and Subcommittee meeting minutes
are posted online at www.quincypublicschools.com. There were no
Subcommittee Meetings for review on the Agenda.
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Executive Session
There was no Executive Session.
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Adjournment
Mayor Koch made a motion to adjourn for the evening at 7:45 p.m. The motion
was seconded by Mrs. Hubley and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.