MINUTES

LANE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 52 D R A F T

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

October 9, 2006

ATTENDANCE:

Board Members: Alan Laisure, Wayne Watkins, Greg Nelson, Sherry Cunningham, Ginger Poage, Keith Andersen, and Paul Jorgensen. Student Representative Brad Cosby; Aanya Aguilar was absent.

District staff, students, and community members identified: Tim Keeley, Drew Braun, Ellen Mooney, Pat McGillivray, Cindy Seely, Bert Eliason, Fred Crisman, Jim Jamieson, Tony Hernandez, Tom Grimsley,

Don Sherry, Kris Kibbee, Glen Martz, Paul Duchin, Merri Steele, Robin Patterson, Kathleen Alexander

CALL TO ORDER

Chair Andersen called the meeting of the Board of Directors to order at 7:02 p.m.

ACTION ON MINUTES

Chair Andersen presented the Minutes of the September 25, 2006 Board meeting and asked for additions or corrections. Chair Andersen requested that, under ‘Action on Minutes’, Chair Watkins be changed to read Chair Andersen and in the following sentence, the word ‘forth’ be changed to fourth. The Minutes were approved as corrected.

DELEGATIONS AND VISITORS

None.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT

Student Presentation

The Cascade Middle School 8^th grade choir, directed by Tom Grimsley, performed a Beatles’ medley. The choir was accompanied by Brandon Steele on bass and Nathan Hanson on keyboard.

Student Report

KHS Student Representative Brad Cosby reported on the pay-it-forward classes, also known as Ace Activities. The activities include rock climbing, rafting, knitting, gardening, fencing, and ballroom dancing; students attended the Bethel Boosters meeting last week and requested, and received, $1,000 to help pay for Ace activities during the school year; the first grading period just ended and 20 students received a perfect attendance award for receiving no tardies, no absences, and passing all classes.

Superintendent Gill reported that Kalapuya has developed a partnership through Senate Bill 300 with Lane Community College, helping students continue their education after the student receives their basic education diploma. Some of the Legislators who helped pass that legislation have been invited to Kalapuya to see what Bill 300 looks like in action. The district also invited Drew Hinds from the Oregon Department of Education to visit Kalapuya to see an example of a good alternative education program. Kalapuya has been given the opportunity to apply for a grant that may tie into the activities Brad reported on above.

WHS Student Representative Aanya Aguilar was not in attendance.

Kalapuya High Summer School Report

Kalapuya teacher Robin Patterson reported that the summer school program was very successful this summer. 132 students applied for summer school spots, 90 students successfully completed at least one summer school class. 80 students participated from WHS – 10 from KHS. A total of 102 semester credits were earned. A $20 application fee was charged per student – $10 of that fee was returned to the student if they had perfect attendance (26 students had perfect attendance). Patterson said Kalapuya’s Summer School is so successful that Kalapuya will continue to offer the program. Kalapuya Summer School provides an opportunity for students to make up credits needed for graduation.

Assistant Superintendent Keeley recognized Paul Duchin and Merri Steele from the Eugene Education Association, who were in the audience. Duchin and Steele plan to attend Bethel school board meetings as their schedule allows.

September Financial Statement

Business Manager Ellen Mooney reviewed the first State School Fund report of the school year. Mooney also reviewed the September Financial Statement Revenues and Expenditures. The projected Ending Fund Balance for September is $2, 023,610

ESP2 Meeting Update

Superintendent Gill reported that an ESP2 meeting was held on September 27^th at Prairie Mountain School to report to the community about the district’s progress on their pre-determined goals. Gill reviewed a handout compiled from the community input section of the meeting. Questions posed to the 65-70 people who participated in the meeting regarding the ESP2 goals were: Where do you see success? Where have we fallen short? Where should we focus today? Thinking ahead – What should we be doing now to prepare for the future, 5 years, 10 years, 15 years? Superintendent Gill said he has included these questions in his blog on the district’s website to gain further community input.

Flash Alert

Superintendent Gill demonstrated FlashAlert.net, a service to which the district subscribes to notify media about school closure. This service is funded by Lane ESD. The information sent from FlashAlert.net to the media is now available to anyone interested in receiving the information. The Board was shown how to subscribe to the notification service on the www.flashalert.net website.

CONSENT AGENDA

Resolution No. 25

Motion: Greg Nelson moved, Alan Laisure seconded, to approve the Consent Agenda as specified below:

CONSENT AGENDA – PERSONNEL ACTION, RESOLUTION # 25

#	Name	Type	Description
1	Laurie Aley	Hire for 06-07	Offer .5 Temporary contract for Facilitating Teacher at Prairie Mtn; New Position; License: Initial; Education: MAT/Education/OSU; Experience: 9 yrs in Bethel; Hired: 9/26/06
2	Debi Bostwick	Hire for 06-07	Offer Temporary contract for Resource Room teacher at Prairie Mtn; Replaces: Kim Condon; License: Initial Special Education; Education: BA/Speech/UofW, MEd/Lesley University; Experience: 9 yrs Special Education; Hired: 9/28/06

Motion Passed 7-0

ACTION ITEMS

Resolution No. 26 - Policy JFCF: Harassment, Bullying, and Cyberbullying – Student

Motion: Wayne Watkins moved, Ginger Poage seconded, to adopt Policy JFCF: Harassment, Bullying, and Cyberbullying – Student. Board members reviewed the changes made to Policy JFCF. A few minor changes were made to the policy since the Board’s first reading on September 25, 2006. A short discussion took place about cyberbullying and how it can be effectively administered. Motion Passed 7-0

Resolution No. 27 - Policy GBN: Harassment, Bullying, and Cyberbullying – Employee

Motion: Greg Nelson moved, Alan Laisure seconded, to adopt Policy GBN: Harassment, Bullying, and Cyberbullying – Student. A few minor changes were made to the policy since the Board’s first reading on September 25, 2006. Motion Passed 7-0

Chair Andersen reminded the Board about their decision at the September 27^th Board meeting to consider passing a resolution taking a stand as a Board against Ballot Measures 41 and 48. Superintendent Gill reported that Measure 41 represents about a 4% cut to the district’s budget in coming years and Measure 48 represents about a 10% cut. Chair Andersen told the Board he supports taking a stand against Ballot Measure 41 and 48 as a Board and he also supports encouraging the district’s patrons to oppose these Measures also. Two sample resolutions for both Measure 41 and 48 were provided to the Board. One of the samples included a statement at the end about strongly urging parents, staff and community members to oppose the measure.

Resolution No. 28 – Approve Board Resolution on Ballot Measure 41

Motion: Greg Nelson moved, Wayne Watkins seconded, to adopt Resolution No. 28 on Ballot Measure 41 with the wording the Board of Directors strongly urges parents, staff and community members to actively oppose Ballot Measure 41 as shown below:

RESOLUTION NO. 28 - OCTOBER 9, 2006

Ballot Measure 41: Federal Deduction

WHEREAS, Ballot Measure 41 will cause a retroactive reduction in tax collections for the current (2005-07) biennium that would require a statewide budget cut of nearly $150 million; and

WHEREAS, the proposed ballot measure would have a substantial negative impact on available revenues for future spending on public services, including a reduction of nearly $800 million in available funds for the 2007-09 state budget; and

WHEREAS, a reduction of this nature would likely lead to a proportionate cut to K-12 public education by more than $300 million as well as cuts to human services, police and prisons and higher education; and

WHEREAS, according to Oregon School Board Association figures, the Bethel School District’s proportionate budget reduction could be as high as $700,000 dollars for the remainder of the 2006-07 school year and $1.9 million for each of the next two years, representing a 4% reduction to current revenue levels in the district’s general fund; and

WHEREAS, such cuts to any and all public services would lead directly to a dramatic reduction in valuable services available to students, the elderly, and the general Oregon citizenry.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Bethel School District Board of Directors is strongly opposed to Ballot Measure 41; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Bethel School District Board of Directors strongly urges parents, staff and community members to actively oppose Ballot Measure 41.

Motion Passed 7-0

Resolution No. 29 – Approve Board Resolution on Ballot Measure 48

Motion: Wayne Watkins moved, Greg Nelson seconded, to adopt Resolution No. 29 on Ballot Measure 48 with the wording the Board of Directors strongly urges parents, staff and community members to actively oppose Ballot Measure 48 as shown below:

Ballot Measure 48: State Spending Limit

WHEREAS, state economists have estimated that if an inflation-plus-population measure similar to Measure 48 had been in effect since 1990, Oregon would have 25 percent less revenue today; and if this measure was applied to the 2007-09 biennium, spending would be reduced by $4.9 billion; and

WHEREAS, according to Oregon School Board Association figures, the Bethel School District’s proportionate budget reduction could be as high as $4.7 million dollars for the remainder of the 2006-07 school year and $4.7 million for each of the next two years, representing a 10% reduction to current revenue levels in the district’s general fund; and

WHEREAS, this type of measure is an inappropriate limit on spending and is likely to undermine adequate services for public schools in Oregon, for at least the following reasons:

• The cost of certain state services such as health care grows much faster than inflation; and since public schools compete with health care services for state resources, this will likely further reduce funding for public schools;

• The senior citizen population – another group served with public services – is growing faster than the general population rate and will likely further compete with public schools for adequate funding;

• Certain elements of school costs, such as fuel and employee health insurance, can grow faster than basic inflation;

• In recent years, the number of students with special needs and English language learners has grown faster than the general student population, requiring additional resources that outpace inflation;

• Even in times of economic recovery, if state resources can only increase by inflation plus population, these resources will not, in real terms, return to pre-recession levels; and

• The measure will limit state bond programs and therefore have a negative impact on the state’s credit rating; and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Bethel School District Board of Directors is opposed to the adoption of any measure limiting increases in state spending on public services by an inflation-plus-population formula or other arbitrary factor, and is strongly opposed to Ballot Measure 48.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Bethel School District Board of Directors strongly urges parents, staff and community members to actively oppose Ballot Measure 48.

Motion Passed 7-0

INFORMATION AND DISCUSSION

NSBA Conference Registration

NSBA Conference Registration materials and housing information were received from Board members who plan to attend the National School Boards Association Conference in San Francisco in April of 2007.

BOARD ACTIVITY UPDATE

Friends of Bethel Schools

· Meeting Tuesday evening at Bethesda Lutheran Church

· Finished signing 10,000 postcards that will be mailed in late October

· A phone banking location is needed

· Saturday, October 21, is a door-to-door literature drop to14,000 households in the Bethel area, 146 people have signed up so far

REVIEW OF NEXT MEETING – October 23, 2006

5:30 pm – Work Session (Dinner at 5:15 pm)

A. Math Improvements

B. Enrollment and Planning Committee Development

7:00 pm – Regular Session

A. Student Reports

B. Student Contact Hours

C. Policies Up for Periodic Review: GBO, GCB, GCBD

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business to bring before the Board, Chair Andersen adjourned the meeting at 8:18 pm

________________________________ _________________________________

Clerk Chair