Regular Workshop Meeting – September 25, 2007
MINUTES
The School Board of St. Lucie County held a regular workshop meeting in the School Board Room
on September 25, 2007 at approximately 5:00 p.m.
PRESENT:
DR. JOHN CARVELLI, Chairman
Member Residing in District No. 3
MS. CAROL A. HILSON, Vice Chairman
Member Residing in District No. 2
MRS. KATHRYN HENSLEY
Member Residing in District No. 4
MR. TROY INGERSOLL
Member Residing in District No. 5
DR. JUDI MILLER
Member Residing in District No. 1
ALSO PRESENT:
MR. MICHAEL J. LANNON, Superintendent
MR. DANIEL B. HARRELL, Attorney
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Chairman Carvelli called the meeting to order. Ms. Michelle King from the United Way of St. Lucie
County led the Pledge of Allegiance.
PUBLIC HEARING
Proposed Amendments to School Board Policies #5.70 – Student Records, #5.711 – Protection
of Student Privacy, #9.75 – Direct Support Organizations, and Safe Driver Plan (Part of #6.173)
Chairman Carvelli opened the public hearing to receive comments from the audience on proposed
amendments to School Board policies #5.70, #5.711, #9.75, and Safe Driver Plan (part of #6.173).
There were no comments from the audience. Board members had reviewed the policies on several
occasions and were ready to vote.
Action: The superintendent recommended the Board approve the
amendments to policies #5.70, #5.711, #9.75, and the Safe
Driver Plan as presented ((Miller/Ingersoll/Carried 5-0).
CONSENT AGENDA
Action: The superintendent recommended the Board approve consent
agenda items #1 through #23 as presented (Hensley/Miller/
Carried 5-0).
Discussion: prior to stating the question, Mr. Ingersoll commented on Item #4 – Bid 08-02 Sale of
Surplus Property. He said he had visited the warehouse in south county and noticed the surplus
had doubled. He asked if staff could look into donating the equipment/computers to non-profit
organizations in the future. Superintendent Lannon responded that staff had already started
working on a plan to do just that and he would follow-up with a report back to the Board when it
was finalized.
Regarding item #16 – Change Order #1 for Suffolk Construction for GMP at Copper Creek K-8, Dr.
Carvelli complimented Mr. Alan Gilbert, Executive Director of Facilities & Maintenance, on the
significant savings of almost $700,000 to the district.
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SR Personnel Agenda & Leaves
TB Payment of Bills
TB Monthly Financial Report
TB Bid 08-02 Sale of Surplus Property – Computers and Peripheral Equipment
TB ITB 08-03S, Term Contract for Integrated Pest Management Services
TB RFP 07-42 Type 2B Modular Classroom and Associated Site Work
AC Lincoln Park Academy Wind Ensemble Trip to Scotland, April 17 – 24, 2008
AC Fort Pierce Central High English Class Trip to Selma, Alabama – March 7 – 11, 2008
AC Lincoln Park Academy Drama Group Trip to New York, New York, January 17 – 21, 2008
SW Learning for Life Character Education Project
SW Addendum to Agmt. for Svcs. with SLC Early Learning Coalition and Nancy Archer
SW Boys’ & Girls’ Club Mentoring Services Grant Proposal
SW Dori Slosberg Driver Education Grant
SW First Amendment to Athletic Trainer Support Agreement with HCA, Health Services of Florida, Inc.
DI Master Inservice Plan & Inservice Component Catalog 2007-08
AG Change Order #1 – Suffolk Construction for GMP at Copper Creek K-8 (Including Value Engineering)
AG Extension of Agreement for Construction Management Services with Morganti Group, Inc.
AG Extension of Agmt. for Construction Mgmt. Svcs. with C. R. Klewin Southeast, Inc.
AG Extension of Agmt. for Construction Mgmt. Svcs. with Paul Jacquin & Sons, Inc.
AG Extension of Agmt. for Construction Mgmt. Svcs. with Urban Building Systems, Inc.
AG Extension of Agmt. for Construction Mgmt. Svcs. with Proctor Construction, Inc.
DH Fort Pierce Central High School – Underground Utility Easements
DH Winterlakes K-8 School – Interlocal Agreement for Water and Wastewater Service
SUPERINTENDENT UPDATE
24. BS ESE Week Presentation, September 30 – October 6, 2007
Mrs. Barbara Slaga, Assistant Superintendent for ESE/Student Services, assisted by Bill Tomlinson,
Director of ESE, and Lesa Kitzmiller, ESE Transition Specialist, informed the Board that September
30 through October 6, 2007 was Exceptional Student Education Week in Florida. They spoke
about the dedication that educators and support staff gave to students in exceptional education
programs. Their commitment resulted in many positive outcomes for approximately 5,000
students identified as students with disabilities and approximately 1,250 students identified as
gifted. It was stated that the impact these educators were making in the lives of St. Lucie
County’s children was worthy of recognition and appreciation. The Board and all staff were
encouraged to work with others to develop activities that focused on the success of ESE students
and their teachers. Student Summer Hovaldt, a senior at Port St. Lucie High School, also came
forward to share some experiences she had while attending the Able Trust Youth Leadership
Forum.
MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR LAKEWOOD PARK ELEMENTARY KINDERGARTEN STUDENT KRISTOPHER
HUFFMAN
MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR MR. HERBERT DICKERSON, RETIRED EDUCATOR
Mr. Lannon asked for a moment of silence in memory of five-year-old Kristopher Huffman who was
tragically struck by a vehicle recently and passed away as a result of that accident. In addition,
Chairman Carvelli asked for a moment of silence in memory of Mr. Herbert Dickerson, a long time
employee since retired, who also passed away during the week.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION NOT ON THE AGENDA – UNITED WAY
At the beginning of the meeting, Superintendent Lannon invited Ms. Michelle King to come
forward and say a few words on behalf of the United Way of St. Lucie County. Ms. King thanked
the Board and all district employees for their support of the United Way. Last year, the employees
in the district raised approximately $78,000. Ms. King indicated this was campaign kick-off time
once again—the goal for this year was over $80,000. Campaign chair Terri Sloan-Bartz also came
forward to thank the Board and its employees for the work they continue to do on behalf of St.
Lucie County citizens.
STAFF REPORT/WORKSHOP ON SELECTED TOPICS
25. OR Synopsis of 2006-07 FCAT Results by AYP Subgroup and
26. OR Report/Review of Instructional Strategies Addressing Achievement Gaps (combined into
one presentation by Dr. Owen Roberts, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching/Learning &
Accountability/Assessment.
Superintendent Lannon preceded Dr. Roberts verbal report on items #25 and #26 by handing out
a copy of an editorial by Florida Representative Dan Gelber that pointed out :
1. The federal government was looking at a massive overhaul of the No Child Left Behind
(NCLB) law, including its name.
2. NCLB Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) was a punitive and biased system against poor
students, ESE students and ESOL students.
3. The FCAT testing system is flawed and Florida was looking at tearing it apart.
4. Accountability was not under attack in Florida and the nation. The current federal and
state systems were also flawed, punitive and aggressive in nature.
Mr. Lannon stated he had provided this information to show where education was moving. The
current 20th Century system was under review at both the state and federal level. Everyone should
be cognizant of the reforms that will position educators in a place where they can move forward
with students.
Following Superintendent Lannon’s comments, Dr. Roberts directed the Board’s attention to the
data (see supplemental minutes packet) regarding Adequate Yearly Progress for the 2006-07
school year that he had previously provided for the Board. Dr. Roberts indicated he was following
up on the Board’s request to bring back information on NCLB Adequate Progress, specifically as it
related to strategies. The Board had reviewed and discussed much of the data during a previous
meeting. The focus was now on strategies that would help close the achievement gap.
Reporting student progress is required by the No Child Left Behind Act to ensure every student is
making adequate yearly progress. Eight schools made adequate yearly progress this year. The
overall status of the district with respect to NCLB – Adequate Yearly progress as shown in the
report indicated there were several areas/subgroups in which the district did not make AYP, e.g.,
economically disadvantaged students, English Language learners, student with disabilities, and
African-American and Hispanic students in reading and mathematics. It was noted that over the
past three years the district had increased the number of AYP criteria met from 53% to 67%, a 14%
improvement. Last year, ten schools made an A and at the same time, 17 schools met 90% or
more of the criteria. However, they still did not make AYP due to the stringent nature of the
system that required 100%. Had the federal system of AYP been on a sliding scale, seven more
schools would have made AYP last year. This year the bar was raised higher—reading proficiency
would be 58% in each subgroup and math would be 62% in each subgroup. Dr. Roberts corrected
Port St. Lucie High School’s grade--they went from a D to a C grade. The three major subgroups
of greatest concern were ESE, ESOL, and low SES in reading and mathematics. Strategies for
reading included more teacher training and adding more reading coaches. In math, staff would
work to increase proficiency in word problem solving. District staff would make visits to schools,
observe teachers and ask students questions to make sure they were learning what was being
taught.
Following Dr. Roberts’ presentation, he entertained questions from board members on closing the
achievement gap. Ms. Donna Dorio, Ms. Betty Hicks, Mr. Nick Zrallack, and Ms. Christine Richards
assisted in responding to inquiries regarding balanced literacy frameworks, fidelity reviews at
each school, classroom walk-throughs and professional development opportunities for teachers.
Dr. Roberts stated that teacher training was an on-going process. The district continued to make
sure that teachers were well equipped and in addition, made efforts to ensure that higher
education was preparing teachers adequately for the classroom.
SPECIAL PRESENTATION NOT ON THE AGENDA – HIGHLIGHTS OF ART JOHNSON’S PRESENTATION
on School Grading System
Mr. Lannon told the Board he wanted to make a special presentation. Palm Beach County School
Superintendent Art Johnson had prepared a report specifically focused on how children in poverty
in all schools in Florida were achieving.
Dr. Johnson had recently shown the report (using
scattergrams) during a K-12 conference in Orlando that Mr. Lannon had attended. Mr. Lannon
said the report consisted of powerful information and it was of great interest because six out of
every ten children in St. Lucie County live in poverty everyday. The report illustrated that the
lower incidents of poverty in a school the greater opportunity a school had to receive a higher
grade. The proficiency level of standard deviations required at the high school level was higher
than the middle school level and the middle school level was higher than the elementary level.
Mr. Lannon indicated that staff would be pulling similar data together for St. Lucie County.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS REPORTS
27. KH Letter of Support for Drums on Fire
Action : The superintendent recommended the Board approve the letter of
support for Drums on Fire as presented (Miller/Ingersoll/Carried 5-0).
Mrs. Hensley presented the Board with the Greater Florida Consortium of School Boards’ 2008
legislative program priority issues. Following a review of the goals, it was recommended that the
Board consider approval of the legislative program.
Action: There was a motion to declare the consideration of the Greater Florida
Consortium of School Boards’ 2008 Legislative Program as an emergency
item (Miller/Hilson/Carried 5-0).
Action: There was a motion to accept the Greater Florida Consortium of School
Boards’ 2008 Legislative Program as presented (Hensley/Miller/
Carried 5-0).
At Dr. Miller’s request, Mr. Lannon provided background information on the three finalists who
had applied for the Commissioner of Education position.
Mr. Lannon informed the Board that on October 9, 2007 there would be a re-hearing before the
Florida Supreme Court on the Certificates of Participation issue.
The court saw there were
significant parties on the same side on the same issue and streamlined the number of parties that
joined the case. It ultimately decided to accept only the briefs that had been filed by associations.
Ms. Hilson had attended a large Health Committee meeting during which members decided to
research federal guidelines with regard to student medical records. The information may be
helpful in creating policy if it becomes necessary in the future.
Mr. Ingersoll thanked staff members for supporting students and schools with their presence at
the varying extracurricular activities, games and events that occur throughout the district. Mr.
Ingersoll also thanked Dr. Miller for the phenomenal “Bowl for Kids Sake” fund raising campaign
she held on behalf of students. Mr. Ingersoll also said he wanted to enter into more community
activities/parades and asked that the Board look at participating as a group. He felt it was
important that the community see board members together.
Dr. Miller explained that she would be recognizing the participants and winners in “Bowl for Kids
Sake” at the November 13, 2007 board meeting. Everyone was spectacular. Dr. Miller and Mr.
Ingersoll thanked principals and their staff for their efforts too.
Ms. Hilson thanked Mrs. Hensley for hosting the Greater Florida Consortium for School Boards
two-day meeting this past September 14-15, 2007.
Dr. Carvelli reminded board members that their final Master Board training was scheduled for
October 4, 2007, 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at the PGA Historical Library in Port St. Lucie.
UNSCHEDULED SPEAKERS
Ms. Jessica Hernandez, a new resident to St. Lucie County, asked the Board to look at providing
extended day care with qualified personnel for special needs children. Chairman Carvelli
encouraged Ms. Hernandez to speak with Superintendent Lannon who may be able to direct her to
someone for assistance.
Mr. Bryan Longworth, Dr. Michael Hofstee, and James Thoma each addressed the proposed
changes to the K-12 Health Curriculum, the abstinence program, and the “Get Real with Aids”
curriculum.
ADJOURNMENT
After conducting all business scheduled to come before the Board, Chairman Carvelli
adjourned the September 25, 2007 regular workshop at approximately 7:40 p.m.