|
A meeting of the Quincy School Committee was held on Wednesday, September 11, 2024 at 6:30 p.m. in the School Committee Room at the Coddington Building.
Superintendent Kevin Mulvey called the roll and present were Mayor Thomas P. Koch, School Committee Chair and School Committee Members Mr. Paul Bregoli, Mr. Doug Gutro, Mrs. Kathryn Hubley, Mrs. Emily Lebo, Mrs. Courtney Perdios, and School Committee Vice Chair Mrs. Tina Cahill.
Also present were: Superintendent Kevin Mulvey, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Erin Perkins, Ms. Kim Connolly, Ms. Allison Cox, Mr. Michael Draicchio, Ms. Julie Graham, Ms. Jennifer Leary, Mr. Michael Marani, Mr. James Mullaney, Ms. Maura Papile, Ms. Kimberly Quinn, Mr. Keith Segalla, Mr. Lawrence Taglieri, Ms. Bridget Vaughan; Quincy Education Association President Gayle Cavalho; and Ms. Laura Owens, Clerk.
Mayor Koch asked for a moment of silence in memory of those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.
Superintendent Mulvey recognized former Quincy Public Schools employees who passed away recently: William Trifone, taught social studies at the elementary, middle, and high school levels for fourteen years and was later a substitute teacher for five years; Esther Madden, who was a teacher’s aide at Lincoln Hancock for eight years.
Mr Gutro spoke in memory of City of Quincy employee Mr. Michael Doherty.
Mrs. Cahill read the following statement into the record: Pursuant to the Open Meeting Law, any person may make an audio or video recording of this public meeting or may transmit the meeting through any medium. Attendees are therefore advised that such recordings or transmissions are being made whether perceived or unperceived by those present and are deemed acknowledged and permissible.
§
|
Regular Meeting
Vice-Chair Presiding
|
|
Ms. Christie Hogan and Ms. Amy Tan, spoke against the proposed changes to the School Committee Open Forum Policy 2.4.10 Public Participation at School Committee Meetings.
Ms. Owens read letters submitted by Ms. Maria Mulligan, Ms. Amy Sorensen-Alawad, Ms. Maggie McKee, Ms. Jill Sabin, Ms. Judy Brams, Ms. Christie DiPaolo, Ms. Shannon Jackson, Ms. Susan Chinsen.Each letter was against the proposed changes to the School Committee Open Forum Policy 2.4.10 Public Participation at School Committee Meetings.
§
|
Open Forum
|
|
Superintendent Mulvey opened his report by noting that in the last week, Quincy Public Schools has welcomed over 1,000 new students at all grades, including our youngest students in Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten. Preliminary district enrollment is 9,915 with student registrations continuing at school sites and Central Registration. October 1 enrollment data and class sizes will be shared at the October 9 School Committee meeting.
The security of our students and staff is uppermost on our minds, especially in light of recent events in other states. School staff were reminded of safety protocols during opening day staff meetings, as this is a collaborative school community effort. School assemblies included discussions with students on safety and seeking out a trusted adult if they notice a problem.
Superintendent Mulvey reviewed recent changes around student transportation, driven in part by thenationwide shortage of bus drivers: Quincy Public Schools has lost 22 drivers since the 2020-2021 school year. Quincy Public Schools currently transports approximately 590 students on large buses and approximately 419 students on our QPS mini-buses. Prior to the start of the school year, seven large bus routes were vended out to First Student in order to meet the transportation needs of the district; the large buses were selected because of the cost difference (there are many more mini-bus routes). Information about the change and the revised bus routes were communicated to school administrators and parents prior to the start of school. The safety of students has been our top priority as we monitor the ongoing transportation process of getting students to school safely and on time, communicating daily with principals. We have identified a number of areas that were problematic in delaying student pickup and drop off during the first weeks of school and have implemented corrections to these areas, including weekly meetings with First Student; adding QPS SLT members to ride on buses to assist with orienting drivers; bus drivers have radios and GPS to assist with rerouting around traffic delays.In addition, school staff are on call for early bus arrivals, we are working with parents and students to ensure prompt arrival for morning and afternoon pickup.
Mrs. Perdios said there were parent concerns for the first couple of days of the school year that have been addressed. Mrs. Perdios asked for clarification that the bus drivers are assigned to the same route consistently and Superintendent Mulvey said that is confirmed, unless there is a driver illness or scheduled day off. If a new driver will be on a route, a Quincy Public Schools staff member will ride with that driver to be sure they are familiar with the route.
Mrs. Lebo asked about the First Student buses, some have the names of other communities, which is confusing for families. Superintendent Mulvey said that First Student is working on updating the bus identification and this should be completed shortly.
Superintendent Mulvey continued his report by noting that the six High School Representatives to School Committee have been elected and will begin attending meetings on a rotating basis on September 25. A schedule was shared with School Committee.
Mrs. Lebo reminded School Committee that a subgroup should be meeting with the student representatives every other month. Mrs. Lebo and Mrs. Hubley volunteered to meet with the students.
Fall Open House/Back to School events are scheduled for all schools throughout this month. These events are a great opportunity for families to meet classroom teachers, learn about curriculum and academic expectations, and how to become more involved in the school community.
The Quincy Art Association will be hosting an art show “Celebrate Quincy” at the QArts Gallery on Hancock Street that features artwork from over 300 students representing all elementary, middle, and high schools in Quincy Public Schools, as well as artwork by QPS Art teachers. This is the second in a three-year art project celebrating Quincy 400. A reception will be held on Sunday, September 15 from noon to 3:00 pm and all are invited to attend. The exhibit will be open during regular QArts Gallery hours through October 12.Special thanks to Dan and Jessica Myers for their efforts and advocacy of our students’ creativity and the Quincy Art Association for their support of the young artists of Quincy for many years.
§
|
Superintendent’s
Report
|
|
Mr. Gutro reviewed that the revision of School Committee Policy 2.3.3 Subcommittees of the School Committee is eligible for vote this evening. The revision was prompted by an update from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees.
Mrs. Hubley made a motion to approve the revision of School Committee Policy 2.3.3 Subcommittees of the School Committee as presented. Mrs. Lebo seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 7-0.
Mr. Gutro reviewed that the revision of School Committee Policy 2.4.10 Public Participation in School Committee Meetings is eligible for vote this evening.
Mrs. Hubley made a motion to approve the revision of School Committee Policy 2.4.10 Public Participation in School Committee Meetings as presented. Mr. Bregoli seconded the motion.
On the motion, Mrs. Perdios is concerned about the impact on transparency, equity, and inclusion for the school community by making these changes.
Mr. Gutro said that policies were updated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and some policies have been retained and others revised. Mr. Gutro heard from constituents over the summer and will vote against the policy revision.
Mayor Koch reminded the community that Open Forum is not the only time to communicate with School Committee, all members are available at the email addresses found on the website.
On a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 5-2. Mr. Bregoli, Mrs. Cahill, Mrs. Hubley, Mrs. Lebo, and Mayor Koch voted YES. Mr. Gutro and Mrs. Perdios voted NO.
§
|
Old Business
Policy 2.3.3 & 2.4.10
(VOTE)
|
|
Curriculum Director Mike Marani, Special Education Coordinator Jennifer Leary, Mathematics Coordinator Kimberly Quinn, and English Language Arts Coordinator Bridget Vaughan presented a review of the Quincy Public Schools summer programs, professional development, and curriculum integration work. There were sixteen summer programs, with 1,822 students from Grades 1-12 enrolled and 279 educators (administrators, teachers, student support, clerical, paraprofessionals).
Special Education programs for Kindergarten and Pre-Kindergarten were held in the new Dr. Rick DeCristofaro Learning Center building. In addition to working with students on maintaining skills including pre-academic, daily living, social, and speech and language, occupational, and physical therapies, the “soft”opening allowed for the development and refinement of school building procedures for pickup and dropoff and traffic management.
Summer Professional Development opportunities were offered to educators in the elementary, middle, and high school levels including: Investigating History and Open Sci Ed curriculums; introduction to Illustrative Mathematics for new teachers; ST Math champions training; new Massachusetts IEP Form training; WELLE Behavior System Management; the Unique Learning System; English Learner and Structured Literacy mini-courses.
Mr. Bregoli asked how many courses high school students can recover during the Summer School program. Mr. Marani said students can earn credits for one or two courses.
Mrs. Lebo said parents are enthusiastic about the summer programming, already inquiring about next year’s programs. Mrs. Lebo noted that the programs were funded by ESSER for the last few years, so new funding sources will be needed.
Mrs. Perdios said that this is a huge undertaking and thanked educators for giving up part of their summer to ensure that students have these opportunities.
Mr. Gutro complimented the diversity of the offerings, the continued evolution of the programs which are a great asset for the city.
§
|
New Business
QPS Summer Programs
Update
|
|
Mrs. Cahill reviewed that at the beginning of the new school year, School Committee also reviews their goals; a Saturday Workshop meeting will be scheduled to prioritize and develop action steps. The School Committee connections to the District Improvement Plan were also shared.
Each Subcommittee Chair reviewed the items currently in subcommittee and removed completed items as needed. Athletics & Wellness; Equity, Diversity & Inclusion; Special Education; and Teaching & Learning left all items as is. Facilities, Transportation & Security will review items at the first subcommittee meeting.
For Budget & Finance, items (1) Creating a QPS Employee Leave Bank; (2) ESSER Funding Expenditures/Impact on Future Budgets; and (4) Purchasing of Athletic Apparel/Equipment were all removed.
For Policy, items (13) School Committee Policy Book Section 2.3.3 Subcommittees of the School Committee and (15) School Committee Policy Book Section 2.4.10 Public Participation at School Committee Meetings were removed as the revisions were approved earlier in the meeting under Old Business.
Ms. Owens noted that she had reformatted Sections 1 through 7 of the School Committee Policy Book posted on the Quincy Public Schools website over the summer, with Sections 8 through 12 currently posted but still to be reviewed and reformatted. Ms. Owens is also working on a review of the Quincy School Committee Policy Book vs. the Massachusetts Association of School Committees Policy Book to recommend additional policies that may need updating.
Mrs. Perdios asked about items remaining in Subcommittee for several years.Mrs. Cahill suggested speaking to the chair of the Subcommittee about getting the item on the agenda as a priority for discussion.
§
|
New Business
Organizational Meeting
|
|
Mr. Gutro referred Creating a Motor Vehicle Idling Policy to the Policy Subcommittee. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and requested a cross-referral to the Facilities, Transportation & Security Subcommittee. On a voice vote, the ayes have it.
Mrs. Lebo made a motion to refer School Committee Policy Book Sections 9.2 School Year and 9.3 School Calendar to the Policy Subcommittee for review and revision. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and on a voice vote, the ayes have it.
§
|
Referrals to
Subcommittee
|
|
Mayor Koch made a motion to appoint Victoria Fallon as a School Nurse. Mr. Bregoli seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 7-0.
Mayor Koch made a motion to appoint Kaitlyn Crowley as a School Nurse. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 7-0.
§
|
School Nurse
Appointments (VOTE)
|
|
Mrs. Lebo made a motion to approve the items listed under the Consent Agenda: Approval of the June 12, 2024 Regular Meeting and Executive Session minutes; a donation from the Ward 2 Civic Association; and grants from the Department of Elementary & Secondary Education and the Governor’s Workforce Skills Cabinet. Mr. Gutro seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 7-0.
§
|
Consent Agenda
|
|
There was no Additional Business.
§
|
Additional Business
|
|
Mrs. Cahill noted that upcoming School Committee meetings will be held on September 25, October 9, and October 23, 2024, all at 6:30 pm at the Coddington Building.
§
|
Communications
|
|
There were no Reports of Subcommittees.
§
|
Reports of
Subcommittees
|
|
Mayor Koch made a motion to move to Executive Session at 8:15 pm for the purpose of Contract Negotiations. School Committee will not return to the Regular Meeting. Mrs. Hubley seconded the motion and on a roll call vote, the ayes have it, 7-0.
§
|
Executive Session
|
|
Since School Committee did not return from Executive Session, the Regular Meeting was adjourned at 8:15 pm.
§
|
Adjournment
|