Lumen Christi Catholic School
School Council Meeting
Dominiak Hall-Thiensville
June 14th, 6:30 P.M.
Members in Attendance: Joe Cesarz, Michelle Correa, Mary Hauke, Kelly Fyfe, Mary
Lee Odom, Chris Callen, Maria Greisch, Sheila Dunne, Patrick Sheehy, Fr. Dan
Sanders, and Steve Gedman
Guests in Attendance: Kathleen Oberneder and Sarah Bahr
1. Sunday’s Gospel was read by Pat Sheehy.
2. Open Session:
a. Discernment for next year’s School Council will be July 12th and will be
led by Fr. Dan.
3. A motion was made by Joe Cesarz to approve the minutes from the May meeting;
Pat Sheehy seconded; no objections
4. Update from the Educational Administrator
a. Enrollment continues to hold at or slightly above the 345 budgeted figure.
b. The playground equipment has been ordered, installation bids are being
evaluated.
5. Update form the Principal
a. Technology training is being conducted for staff. Fr. Dan shared
comments he received from a teacher he knows who applied for one of
the schools open positions. This teacher was impressed with how
advanced the technology is at Lumen Christi compared to other schools
this teacher has worked at.
b. Professional development will be held for teachers on lesson planning
during June and August. In the coming school year, the teachers will be
able outline for parents the skills the children will acquire during the
semester.
c. New K-5, 2nd, and 3rd grade teachers have been hired. The hiring
committee is still searching for a Science teacher. Interviews will be held
next Tuesday.
d. A playground supervisor and aftercare supervisor have been hired as
well.
6. Enrollment:
a. Maria stated we are at 347 students enrolled for next year. Our hope is
that we will be at 350 or above.
7. Orientations
a. Fr. Dan stated that the orientations he attended went well. The teachers
did a wonderful job. Attendance was high - approximately 60-70% of
students and parents attended the sessions.
8. Scheduled Topics
a. No uniform policies need to be reviewed.
b. Both handbooks need to be revised. Kelly Fyfe will circulate draft copies
in July and requests feedback from the School Council by the August
meeting.
c. School Council members are going to be provided with a survey to assess
the performance of the School Council this past year.
d. Sheila Dunne agreed to conduct the Alumni assessments. The School
Council will discuss the results at the August meeting.
e. The School Council discussed having an alumnus attend one or more
School Council meetings next year to get their feedback and insight on the
preparation and skills they received at Lumen Christi.
9. Tuition Letter
a. The School Council reviewed a draft of the tuition increase letter. The
letter included details on the actual cost to educate a child at Lumen
Christi vs. the subsidized tuition rate. The letter will be sent in the
welcome back package in August. Administration will redraft the letter
and bring it back to the School Council for approval.
10. Policy Discussion
a. Thursday Folder – Inclusion of non-school material: The School Council
discussed creating a policy that defines what commercial solicitations can
be included in the Thursday folders (sports camps, Cardinal football, etc.).
The School Council agreed that if including the material can benefit the
children of the school, the material can be included; however, inclusion
will always be per the discretion of the Principal. This broad policy
definition will be drafted and submitted to the School Council for
approval.
b. Banking of Sick Days: Kelly Fyfe outlined the current policy for banking
of sick days. Sick days can be “banked” and carried forward up to ____
days. Accrued sick days are not payable upon resignation / termination /
retirement. A number of teachers have reached the maximum amount of
banked sick days and Kelly Fyfe has seen some staff utilize sick days
towards the end of the school year rather than lose them as they are at
the “use or lose it” amount of banked sick days. Kelly Fyfe asked if the
number of days that can be banked could be increased. Since taking a
number of consecutive sick days would require a doctor’s note and
because the banked days are not payable upon a teacher leaving the
school the School Council recommended that the number of banked sick
days should be increased. The recommendation will be forwarded to the
Parish Personnel Committee for their review as it will be that
Committee’s decision to make.
11. Committees – Committee discussions are postponed until the August meeting.
12. Discernment
a. Discernment will take place at the July meeting.
b. Fr. Dan provided a definition of discernment: Through quiet, prayer, and
reflection, the candidates will determine how to best use the gifts God has
given them. If the School Council is not for them, where else within the
Parish could their gifts be utilized?
There being no further business to come before the School Council, the meeting
adjourned at 8:34 P.M. by Joe Cesarz