School Committee
School Committee: January 7, 2021
The Marblehead School Committee met virtually on January 7, 2021 and voted unanimously to return to hybrid learning starting Monday, January 11, following a presentation by Superintendent John Buckey on a COVID decision-making dashboard and case-count tracker. The committee also approved proceeding with the winter athletic season under COVID protocols, a five-year lease-purchase agreement for a new school bus totaling $121,918.12, and a schedule of bills totaling approximately $3.55 million. Additional business included approval of 2020-2021 school committee goals with amendments, revisions to several standing policies, and a school-naming timeline directing members to present proposed names at the January 21 meeting with a vote scheduled for February 4.
Committee votes 5-0 to return to hybrid learning Monday, January 11
The superintendent said he was confident mitigation practices supported a safe return; the committee unanimously affirmed the decision.
Following the dashboard discussion, the superintendent stated he was confident in the district’s mitigation practices and recommended returning to hybrid learning on Monday, January 11. He anticipated a possible rise in public health metrics during that week but did not expect it to preclude hybrid operations. He noted the reopening committee would convene Monday to establish a notification timeline and robocall protocol for any last-minute building-level closures.
The committee voted 5-0 to affirm the superintendent’s decision to return to hybrid learning starting January 11.
| Member | Vote |
|---|---|
| Sarah Gold | Yes |
| Megan Taylor | Yes |
| David Harris | Yes |
| Sarah Fox | Yes |
| Emily Barron | Yes |
John Buckey (Superintendent) · Sarah Fox (Chair) · Sarah Gold · Megan Taylor · Emily Barron · David Harris
Also on the agenda
Commendations: Veterans School Cornerstones group, finance director Michelle Cresta
Principal Matt Fox and committee member Megan Taylor recognized student community service and the school finance director's work supporting the town.
Veterans School Principal Matt Fox highlighted two commendations: the Cornerstones student group, which made handmade cards for Deborah House residents and collected over 180 toys for Toys for Tots, and PE teachers Mr. McIntosh and Mr. Wachtel for a National Parks fitness project. Committee member Megan Taylor commended Finance Director Michelle Cresta, who has been serving as interim support for the town’s finance department while simultaneously managing her school-department responsibilities.
Matt Fox (Veterans School Principal) · Megan Taylor (School Committee member)
Teachers commended for handling Jan. 6 Capitol events; student rep Dan Howells updates committee
A committee member thanked teachers for helping students process events in Washington, D.C.; student representative Dan Howells reported on senior-year planning and an upcoming virtual production of 'Urinetown.'
A committee member thanked teachers and support staff for creating space for students to process the January 6, 2021 events at the U.S. Capitol. Student representative Dan Howells reported that senior class officers are planning for prom, senior show, and senior banquet with contingency alternatives. He also noted that the musical Urinetown, postponed from the prior spring, will be recorded and released virtually in early February. The committee discussed a formal commendation letter for Howells in recognition of his three years of service as student representative.
Sarah Fox (Chair) · Dan Howells (Student Representative)
Resident requests second public comment period at end of meeting
Cassie Kindle asked the committee to hold a second public comment period after action items so residents could respond to substantive discussion.
Resident Cassie Kindle requested a second public comment opportunity at the end of the meeting so parents and community members could respond to agenda items while discussion was fresh. The chair noted the request and said she could bring it to a motion at the end of the meeting.
Cassie Kindle (Resident at mic)
Minutes from December 3 approved 4-0-1
The committee approved the December 3, 2020 meeting minutes with one abstention from a member who was not present at that meeting.
The committee voted 4-0-1 to approve the December 3, 2020 meeting minutes. One member abstained because she was not present at that session. Minutes from December 17 were deferred to the committee’s second January meeting.
Sarah Gold · Megan Taylor · Emily Barron · Sarah Fox (Chair) · David Harris
Superintendent presents COVID decision-making dashboard tracking hybrid vs. remote triggers
Superintendent Buckey unveiled a multi-factor dashboard to guide and communicate decisions about switching between hybrid and fully remote learning.
Superintendent Buckey presented two tools developed with input from the reopening committee, CPAC, the teachers union, the Board of Health, and the superintendent’s health and safety advisory committee.
Decision Dashboard — The dashboard tracks three core questions: (1) Is there evidence of in-school transmission? (2) Is building-level staffing adequate? (3) Has the Board of Health indicated in-school learning is safe? It displays weekly public-health indicators including Marblehead’s color threshold (consistently yellow), town positivity rate, and average case counts. The dashboard notes that school-level decisions to go remote can be made by building principals if staffing falls below adequate levels, while broader or longer closures require Board of Health or school committee involvement.
Case Tracker — A second tool shows cumulative and weekly COVID cases affecting in-person students, in-person staff, remote students, and remote staff. As of the meeting date, 44 total cases had been recorded since reopening, with 25 involving in-person students. The superintendent cited CDC guidance and advice from the superintendent’s health advisory group (including a former state public health commissioner) in declining to send classroom-level case notifications, citing stigma risks and the small cohort sizes that make identification easy.
John Buckey (Superintendent) · Nan (Assistant Superintendent, referenced)
Committee debates COVID notification policy, school-level vs. committee oversight of remote decisions
Members questioned the 'many' threshold for remaining in hybrid, hospital-capacity metrics, and whether longer remote periods require a committee vote.
Committee member Megan Taylor asked for clarification on the word ‘many’ in the criteria for remaining in hybrid learning and questioned how hospital capacity would be defined as ‘critical.’ The superintendent noted that hospital CEOs from Beverly and North Shore had recently met with town officials and that their declaration would constitute the trigger.
Member Sarah Fox raised concerns that the December decision to go remote for the week before and after school vacation was made without school committee advice and consent as required under the emergency supplemental policy adopted at the start of the school year. She argued that remote periods longer than a few days should require a public meeting, committee vote, and public input. Emily Barron agreed and supported adding a second committee member to the reopening committee. Megan Taylor volunteered to join and said she would be happy to support Sarah Fox on that committee.
The committee also discussed the superintendent’s proposal to send case data to the reopening committee minutes posted publicly on the Back Together Marblehead website. Members agreed that information-sharing (not deliberation) via email updates after Board of Health meetings would be appropriate.
Megan Taylor (School Committee member) · Sarah Fox (Chair) · Emily Barron (School Committee member) · David Harris (School Committee member) · John Buckey (Superintendent)
Committee debates classroom-level COVID case notifications vs. district-level case tracker
Members disagreed over whether families should receive school-level or classroom-level alerts when a COVID case is confirmed, with the superintendent citing stigma and health professional guidance against granular disclosure.
The superintendent presented the case tracker and explained the decision not to send classroom-level COVID notifications. He cited CDC guidance on maintaining confidentiality to prevent stigma and noted that the superintendent’s health advisory group — including a former state public health commissioner, physicians, nurses, lead nurse Deanna McMahon, and others — unanimously did not recommend classroom-level letters.
Member Sarah Fox argued that families managing high-risk household members need classroom-level information to make informed decisions about in-person attendance, drawing an analogy to letters sent home for strep, flu, and lice. She contended that withholding the information actually reduces access to in-person learning for vulnerable families.
David Harris acknowledged the tension but said the district’s masking, distancing, and contact-tracing protocols are materially different from a normal school year, and that close contacts are privately notified. He supported relying on the professionals in place.
Megan Taylor noted that small cohort sizes (sometimes eight students) make it easy for families to identify a case even without a formal letter, and suggested the tracker — which shows cases by building — is an additional layer of transparency beyond state and town data. The discussion did not resolve in a formal vote on notification policy. The superintendent confirmed the tracker does not replace existing school-level communications but adds aggregate data visible to the public.
John Buckey (Superintendent) · Sarah Fox (Chair) · Megan Taylor (School Committee member) · David Harris (School Committee member) · Emily Barron (School Committee member)
Discussion turns to expanding in-person learning and planning for next school year
The superintendent and committee discussed options for increasing in-person time, including shorter daily cohorts, and the need to begin planning for fall 2021.
The committee and superintendent discussed ongoing conversations in the reopening committee about how to increase in-person learning — including options such as shorter daily cohorts (e.g., two-and-a-half-hour AM/PM kindergarten blocks five days a week) versus full-day cohort days under the current Tuesday model. The superintendent noted that any reduction in distancing from six to three feet or shift to full-day hybrid would require a school committee vote and a new family model-choice opportunity.
Member Emily Barron requested that the committee begin planning for next school year soon, noting that no vaccine is currently approved for children under 12 (and possibly under 16), making it likely that some remote programming will be needed in fall 2021. The superintendent referenced a call with the state Commissioner of Education, who expressed hope for full in-person school in September, though the superintendent acknowledged that logistical and capacity variables remain unresolved.
John Buckey (Superintendent) · Emily Barron (School Committee member) · David Harris (School Committee member) · Sarah Fox (Chair)
Superintendent discusses return-to-school planning for next year with adult vaccination as key factor
District leaders expressed hope for full in-person learning next year while acknowledging a measurable number of students may need to remain remote.
Board members and the superintendent discussed planning for the 2021-22 school year. The superintendent noted that once the adult population is vaccinated, fitting students at three-foot distancing becomes feasible, and expressed hope that most students could return in-person full days, potentially still masked. A smaller contingent needing to remain remote was identified as a planning priority.
Superintendent (John)
Superintendent begins academic year calendar planning, consults MEA and other districts
The new superintendent acknowledged the contentious history of the district's academic calendar and has begun outreach to peer districts and the Marblehead Educators Association.
The superintendent reported beginning work on the academic year calendar, noting that other superintendents (Newton, Brookline, Swampscott, Wellesley) described it as a ‘third rail.’ Conversations with the MEA began on start dates, professional development days, half days, and conferences. A draft calendar #1 was prepared with the intention of presenting it at the January 21st meeting.
Superintendent (John)
State requires 35 hours of live instruction per 10-day period; district makes schedule adjustments
The Massachusetts Department of Education issued a second survey requiring districts to ensure students receive at least 35 hours of live instruction over every 10-day period, eliminating asynchronous time from the count.
Assistant Superintendent (Nan) presented a teaching and learning update. The state’s first survey in late October found Marblehead met expectations for daily instructional hours (5.0 for elementary, 5.5 for middle/high). A second survey, due in February, requires 35 hours of live synchronous instruction per 10-day period and that all students have daily contact with a teacher.
Feedback indicated Marblehead needed to increase live instruction by an average of 27 minutes per day across the district. Adjustments being made include:
- Glover and Coffin schools: Logging on 15 minutes earlier in the afternoon (approximately 1:15 PM), adding a synchronous integrated allied arts block for remote students, and continuing instruction during mask breaks.
- Village school: Eliminating one mask break, logging on 15 minutes earlier in the afternoon, and adding a live allied arts block.
- Veterans Middle School: Lengthening in-person classes by reducing passing time; changing dismissal from 12:00 to 12:15; adding Friday afternoon advisory for all cohorts.
- High school: Adding two minutes per class on Wednesdays.
Principals confirmed many changes were already in place; remaining changes would begin the following Monday, well before the January 19th deadline. The state confirmed no makeup requirement for the period before the new standards.
Nan (Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning) · Sarah (school committee member)
Board members raise questions about remote-only students' access to live instruction and allied arts
Board members questioned whether fully remote students, particularly at the high school, were receiving adequate daily live contact with teachers under the new state requirements.
A board member (Sarah Gold) noted that some fully remote high school students never have a live interface with teachers, raising concerns about social-emotional well-being. The assistant superintendent confirmed that state requirements apply to the selected model of instruction (hybrid), not fully remote students, but that principals are working to ensure all students see a staff member every day.
A board member (Megan) sought clarification about the new afternoon schedule changes at the elementary level, specifically around the 12:45 PM log-on for asynchronous allied arts work. The superintendent clarified the change was specific to the full remote week and that students would return to the hybrid schedule starting Monday.
Sarah Gold (school committee member) · Megan (school committee member) · Nan (Assistant Superintendent) · Superintendent (John)
Teaching and learning committee to meet in January; FY22 budget calendar under development
The teaching and learning committee plans a January meeting to review structured learning time, and the budget subcommittee will meet the following week to review a draft FY22 budget calendar.
The teaching and learning committee last met in December and plans to reconvene in January to review structured learning time and continue dialogue about learning models going forward. A board member suggested forming a subcommittee to plan for students who may remain remote in the fall.
The superintendent noted the budget subcommittee would meet the following week to review a draft FY22 budget calendar, budget priorities, and NESDEC enrollment projections. Budget worksheets would be sent to building leaders by the end of that week or early the next week.
Nan (Assistant Superintendent) · Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Superintendent (John) · Megan (school committee member)
School committee votes 5-0 to approve winter athletic season with COVID safety protocols
Athletic Director Greg Siglarski presented the winter sports plan; the committee unanimously approved proceeding with games beginning the following Tuesday through February 21st.
Athletic Director Greg Siglarski presented the winter athletic season plan. Key details:
- Season dates: Games scheduled to start the following Tuesday, running through February 21st; fall 2 season begins February 22nd.
- Spectators: No away spectators at any games. A majority of league schools are allowing two home spectators per home athlete, consistent with the fall season. Schools using shared facilities (ice rink, pool) are subject to those facilities’ rules; the Revere rink left spectator decisions to Marblehead. Live-streaming options available at the field house and rink.
- Red-town policy: A previous Marblehead policy not to play towns that had been in the red for three consecutive weeks was found to be unique—no other league member was doing this. Under that policy, only Gloucester (recently out of the red) would have been a playable opponent.
- Quarantine risk: If a Winthrop player tested positive within 48 hours of a game against Marblehead, both teams would quarantine for 14 days. At the high school level, the flexible schedule structure (using platforms like Edgenuity) means a team quarantine would not necessarily tip the entire school to full remote, unlike at the elementary level.
- Transportation: Buses operating at half capacity; parent transport allowed as in the fall.
- Co-curricular activities: The superintendent emphasized support for all co-curricular activities (band, theater, student council, clubs) not just athletics.
A board member (Sarah Gold) raised concerns about the mixed message of allowing sports while restricting in-person learning, and suggested the committee revisit sports if the school goes fully remote, which the committee agreed to address at that time. Roll call vote: Sarah Gold yes, Megan Taylor yes, Sarah Fox yes, Emily Barron yes, David Harris yes.
Greg Siglarski (Athletic Director) · Superintendent (John) · Sarah Gold (school committee member) · Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Dan Bauer (High School Principal)
Committee approves schedule of bills totaling approximately $3.55 million
A bill schedule including a building project was approved 4-0 with one member absent.
The committee approved a schedule of bills totaling $3,549,572.50. The chair noted the figure includes a building project schedule. Roll call vote: Sarah Gold yes, Sarah Fox yes, Emily Barron yes, David Harris yes (Megan Taylor absent).
Sarah Fox (school committee chair)
Committee approves five-year lease-purchase of new school bus for $121,918
A new bus arrived the same day as the vote; the district will enter a government lease-purchase agreement with TCF National Bank, funded through the town's capital vehicle fund.
CFO/Business Manager Michelle presented the bus lease-purchase approval. Key points:
- A new bus arrived the day of the meeting. Capital funds for its acquisition were approved at the prior Annual Town Meeting.
- The town chose a lease-purchase structure; the school committee was asked to formally authorize it since it is a school vehicle.
- Agreement: Five-year lease-purchase with TCF National Bank; total cost $121,918.12. No buyout at end of lease—ownership transfers automatically. Payments funded through the town’s capital vehicle fund, not the operating budget.
- The new bus becomes the district’s fourth bus. The oldest bus (requiring extensive repairs) will become a spare and eventually be traded in.
- The district still lacks enough drivers for its fleet; currently has two regular bus drivers.
- Michelle also noted a forthcoming FY22 capital request for three F-350 pickup trucks with plows to replace a 1999 GMC, a 2006 Ford F-550, and a 2007 F-550—all hand-me-downs from the highway department. Vehicle repair costs run approximately $30,000 per year.
Roll call vote: Sarah Gold yes, Sarah Fox yes, Emily Barron yes, David Harris yes (4-0).
Michelle (Business Manager/CFO) · Sarah Fox (school committee chair)
School committee formally adopts three-area goals: strategic plan, facilities, and budget
After a workshop process, the committee approved goals covering strategic plan development, a long-term facilities master plan, and FY22 budget priorities.
The committee reviewed and discussed three goal areas developed at a prior workshop:
Strategic Plan Goal: Engage a facilitator to guide strategic plan development; work with the superintendent to create an advisory group inclusive of district personnel and community/town stakeholders; develop a timeline. The committee noted the current strategic plan technically expires this year but a new superintendent and pandemic make extension prudent. Target: have framework in place before the June 3rd meeting (pre-election).
Facilities Goal: Develop a long-term comprehensive facilities master plan with properly budgeted funding attached; perform a biannual assessment of progress. Discussion clarified this goal focuses on maintaining and funding upkeep of existing buildings (roofs, HVAC, kitchen equipment, etc.) rather than new construction. The committee noted prior master plans existed but lacked attached funding sources.
Budget Goal: Determine FY22 priorities via the budget calendar; develop a budget supporting educational needs; collaborate with administration and town representatives to present the FY22 budget for town meeting passage in May; provide oversight of the FY21 budget.
A board member (David Harris) noted the budget goal as written largely describes existing legal responsibilities and suggested adding language about developing a prioritized list of long-term budget needs and their costs. Discussion touched on override as an eventual tool but the committee did not commit to a specific override timeline.
Megan Taylor (school committee member) · Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Emily Barron (school committee member) · Sarah Gold (school committee member) · David Harris (school committee member)
Committee debates whether long-term budget goals require a strategic plan first
Members discussed creating a living 'wish list' document to track district budget deficits and long-term needs, independent of the strategic planning process.
Board members debated whether a comprehensive set of long-term budget goals could be established before a full district strategic plan was in place. One member argued that some needs — such as technology infrastructure — were clear regardless of strategic direction, while another cautioned that goals tied to strategy should wait. The group converged on starting a running list of budget needs and deficits, to be tracked in a public-facing document. A member noted the absence of such a list had been a recurring problem and called it ‘a fatal flaw.’ The discussion concluded with agreement to add a goal: work with district administrators to identify a long-term budget goals wish list.
Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Megan Taylor (school committee member) · David Harris (school committee member)
Committee votes unanimously to accept amended 2020-2021 goals
The motion included rewording a facilities line item and adding a long-term budget goals wish list charge, with formal review set for June 3, 2021.
The chair moved to accept the 2020-2021 school committee goals incorporating two amendments: changing ‘facilities allocated’ to ‘facilities budgeted,’ and adding a charge to work with district administrators to identify a long-term budget goals wish list. The motion was made by Megan Taylor, seconded by Sarah Gold, and passed unanimously — Sarah Gold yes, Megan Taylor yes, Emily Baron yes, David Harris yes, and a fifth member (Fairfax) yes.
Megan Taylor (school committee member) · Sarah Gold (school committee member) · David Harris (school committee member) · Emily Baron (school committee member)
Committee votes unanimously to approve standing policy revisions
Revisions to policies IGB, IHAE, IHAI, and NFF received their final reading and passed 5-0.
The chair noted the policies had been reviewed before the winter break and this was their final reading prior to a vote. No members raised questions. Sarah Gold moved, Sarah (a second member) seconded, and the roll call resulted in unanimous approval: Sarah Gold yes, Megan Taylor yes, Fairfax yes, Emily Baron yes, David Harris yes.
Sarah Gold (school committee member)
School committee sets two-meeting naming process; vote targeted for February 4
Each member will bring one school name with reasoning to the January 21 meeting; public comment and email feedback will follow before a final vote at the February 4 meeting.
The chair reopened the school naming discussion, noting a new building cannot open without a name and that logistical planning — including a mural — depends on the name’s length. Members agreed on a three-step process:
- January 21: Each member presents one name with reasoning; public comment taken at the close of that meeting.
- Two-week window: Public may email the school committee or comment at meetings.
- February 4: Public comment at the opening of the meeting, then a vote.
Members acknowledged the earlier community suggestion-box process was informally tallied but noted ballot-stuffing concerns (e.g., nine submissions from one address) and misinformation at some schools about eligible names. The group agreed each member may nominate any name, not just those from the prior suggestion list. One member noted the school committee chair said the naming decision is controversial and that the January 21 meeting was expected to be contentious.
Sarah Gold (school committee chair) · Megan Taylor (school committee member) · David Harris (school committee member) · Emily Baron (school committee member)
Building project liaison reports brick ~95% complete, windows ~60% in
Photos taken the day of the meeting showed the new elementary school's exterior nearing completion, with interior sheet-rocking underway and a mosaic installation planned.
The building project liaison (identified as David) shared fresh photographs of the new elementary school taken that day by Brian Johnson from Left Field. Key progress highlights:
- Brick: approximately 95% complete; some areas tarped for curing and washing.
- Windows: approximately 60% installed; remainder expected within a couple of weeks.
- Exterior panels: composite panels designed to look like weathered wood will be installed above windows on the south-facing wall.
- Retaining wall: nicknamed ‘the Great Wall of China’ on-site; finished to resemble natural granite.
- Interior: sheet-rocking underway in the cafetorium; ceiling in the media center will feature a wave treatment in blue and green tones.
- Mosaic: planned half-inside, half-outside at the gymnasium/cafetorium junction.
- Gardens: each first-floor classroom will have a small garden plot accessible from exterior doors.
An additional committee meeting focused solely on interior design was scheduled for the following Thursday.
David Harris (building project liaison) · Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Emily Baron (school committee member)
Member proposes reinstating public forums; deferred to a future agenda item
A school committee member called for reviving themed community forums held three times a year, saying the committee is the only town board that does not engage publicly during meetings.
Sarah Fox proposed reinstating community open-forum events that had been held before district leadership turnover — events she described as well-attended and respectful, with themed sessions (e.g., one focused on special education). She noted the committee is the only Marblehead board that does not respond to public comment during meetings, contrasting it with the Select Board chair’s practice of answering questions during public comment.
The chair acknowledged the idea was worthwhile but said the meeting (running past 10:30 p.m.) was not the right moment for the discussion. The chair suggested placing it on a future agenda, potentially asking the MASC representative to advise on best practices, and noted that improving meeting efficiency would be a prerequisite to adding public engagement time.
Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Sarah Gold (school committee chair)
Committee votes unanimously to open a second public comment period
A resident thanked the committee for the public forum proposal and praised the speed of new school construction before the meeting was adjourned at 10:42 p.m.
The chair entertained a motion to hold a second public comment period at the close of the meeting. The motion carried 5-0. One resident (‘Cassie’/’Kelly’) briefly thanked Sarah Fox for suggesting community forums and expressed amazement at the pace of the new school construction. No other hands were raised. The chair adjourned the meeting at 10:42 p.m., noting it was the longest meeting on record.
Resident at mic (identified as Cassie/Kelly) · Sarah Gold (school committee chair)
Committee discusses MOU with Recreation & Parks and a land parcel inquiry at 5 Prince Street
A potential buyer inquired about a small school-owned land parcel near the Vets school; the committee also received a draft MOU formalizing a longstanding informal grounds-maintenance arrangement with the Parks department.
Two correspondence items were briefly addressed:
5 Prince Street parcel: The superintendent received an email from a party interested in purchasing a small strip of school-owned land near the Veterans School. The superintendent indicated the matter should come before the school committee. Members noted any sale would require the land to be returned to the town first, then transferred through town meeting. One member raised the possibility of a lease or easement instead. The chair said she would contact Select Board Chair Jackie to begin coordinating next steps, noting a warrant article placeholder should be ready for the January 21 meeting (the last meeting before the warrant closes).
Parks & Recreation MOU: The superintendent shared a draft memorandum of understanding with the Recreation and Parks Department formalizing the longstanding informal arrangement under which Parks maintains school grounds (excluding athletic fields). Members noted the document should be strengthened to clearly define responsibilities — including who handles landscaping, waste removal, and specialized upkeep — before a vote is taken.
John (Superintendent) · Sarah Fox (school committee member) · Sarah Gold (school committee chair) · Megan Taylor (school committee member)
Tonight's record
11 decisions ▾
- Approved return to hybrid learning starting Monday, January 11, 2021
- Approved minutes from December 3, 2020 (4-0-1, one abstention)
- Approved plan for a second school committee member (Megan Taylor) to join the reopening committee
- Approved proceeding with winter athletic season under COVID protocols
- Approved schedule of bills totaling $3,549,572.50
- Approved five-year lease-purchase agreement with TCF National Bank for a new bus totaling $121,918.12
- Approved school committee goals in three areas: strategic plan, facilities, and budget
- Approved 2020-2021 School Committee goals with amendments, for review at the June 3, 2021 meeting
- Approved policy revisions for policies IGB, IHAE, IHAI, and NFF
- Approved holding a second public comment period at the close of the meeting
- Held school-naming discussion; set January 21 as the date for members to present name nominees with reasoning
8 votes ▾
- in favor (unanimous) Affirm superintendent's decision to return to hybrid learning Monday, January 11
- in favor (4 to 0, one abstention) Approve minutes from December 3, 2020
- in favor (5 to 0) Support winter athletic season proceeding as planned
- in favor (4 to 0) Approve schedule of bills totaling $3,549,572.50
- in favor (4 to 0) Enter into lease-purchase agreement with TCF National Bank for new bus at $121,918.12
- in favor (unanimous) Accept 2020-2021 School Committee goals as amended, for review at June 3, 2021 meeting
- in favor (unanimous) Accept policy revisions for policies IGB, IHAE, IHAI, NFF
- in favor (unanimous) Open second public comment period
247 min full transcript ▾
AI-generated · may contain errors · verify with the source video
Transcript captured from YouTube auto-captioning. No speaker labels; proper names and dollar figures occasionally misheard. Click any timecode to jump to that moment in the source video.
22:51 hey nan hey nan hi i’m going to give you co-host capabilities and then you’ll be able to share your screen when you want to perfect thank you
23:37 i have unmuted myself per your instruction you just beat me to admitting somebody and i accidentally clicked please unmute
24:19 sir sarah have you seen james he’s been texting me telling me he can’t he’s having trouble he can’t seem to get in no i haven’t seen him i just admitted a whole bunch of people um but he if i was looking for him when i saw you i was looking for him yeah um let me text him again i don’t know he sent me a photo of the agenda so he’s got the right link i don’t know what’s going on let me text somebody to try again because we were in executive session and that we were recessed so i was trying to keep an eye on the waiting room and let people in to just sit but um maybe that was maybe he was in the waiting room and kind of timed out or something all right
25:06 listen the easiest thing is the hot link right from the town web page yeah that’s the one i use right you just just the direct link and not cut and paste anything
25:20 yeah that’s how i always get in okay let me text him all right
26:32 everybody’s in a new background megan emily david everyone’s mixing it up for the year i had to uh get out of that brown office that i was in but it looks like you still brought bono with you in there yeah we’re redoing our living room and he’s he’s coming you travel around the house with him
27:01 i’ve allowed my eighth grader to be in this office for the past few days so i wanted to like put a bomb in it and find a different room but alas i just told him to clear off the desk
27:35 yeah yeah well the good thing is that it’s on youtube it is concerning that people might not be able to get in though i know that is concerning well there’s plenty in he said he didn’t go to the town link i told him to to go to the town website to go to the you know community meetings and look for that i don’t know how i don’t know what he was doing he might i don’t know if he was dialing in i have no idea
28:22 all right success yay
28:31 there you go me right since james is here i will officially call the meeting back to order at 704.
28:41 all right so we will kick off with commendations and we have matt fox from the veterans school here with us this evening matt take it away oh thanks for having me thanks for being here great things happen school but i picked a couple uh just to sort of chat about the first as chronicled in our marblehead reporter our cornerstones group is also a great start to the year uh they started first with handmade cards uh for residents of the deborah house and then they also did a toys drive a toys for tots toys drive right before uh december vacation and they raised over 180 toys uh took three firemen to unload them from julia’s car so that was great the second commendation uh is really on behalf of all of our
29:29 teachers uh who are being so creative uh throughout this uh this different type of school year uh but i’ll highlight two of our teachers mr mcintosh mr wachtel our pe teachers uh they’re just kicking off with a new project that they’re starting with the students the national parks project and what they’re doing is they’re combining physical activity with students learning about national parks and what kind of physical activities they can do the national parks to what they’re going to do is students will progress from park to park virtually accumulating miles through neighborhood walks through runs through biking through swimming rowing elliptical machine however they can accumulate miles and they’re going to be working on both individual and class goals and they’re going to get from park to park to park and learn about these different parks and some of the physical activities they
30:16 can do there so that’s just one example the tremendous amount of creativity that’s happening on building now so those are my accommodations thanks matt that’s fantastic i love that idea all right um school committee does anybody have any commendations megan i think you had said you have one yep i have i have one um so i just want to recognize michelle cresta our finance director um she has been helping out with the town recently and um i think she’s now officially the interim until they find um you know while they look to replace a few of their positions in their finance department um i think the fact that she can’t help out is a testament to the
31:02 collaborative relationship that we’ve built between the schools and the town so i’m just happy to see that this is one of the fruits of that labor um and i have to say i forget that michelle’s only been here for a year um you know she’s made such a tremendous impact to our school department obviously with the work that you know she and bill and john did last year with the cleanup and as she continues to work through that and put the controls in place so that we can have a much more effective financial management on top of her day-to-day job which is you know extensive anyway so i think she always brings her can-do attitude she’s always willing to go above and beyond and this is just another example of that so you know michelle i’m pretty sure i speak for the entire committee that we are so
31:48 appreciative of you and i just wanted to make sure that we you know properly acknowledged your contribution and thank you thank you
32:01 secondly thank you um i i just wanted to uh thank the teachers for the work that they did today to sort of process the events that happened in washington yesterday um you know they teachers are often tasked with sort of being that that on the front lines of you know it very similar to parents of having to to meet a kid where they’re at and create a space and whether that space is a space of normalcy so that the day can continue particularly when we’re talking about our youngest learners or a space to process and decompress with our older learners i was on the high school sac meeting this afternoon and um you know 99 of the
32:47 teachers and students who were in that meeting talked about having processed in multiple classes teachers talked about just real really clearing the schedule so that that could happen and that um you know that learning can take place around around these events and and how we how we deal with them at school levels and i just i’m always very very appreciative for the work that the teachers um and all the support staff as well do to help our students in these difficult times
33:27 all right then i will move us to our student representative dan howells i believe i saw him come in hi dan welcome tonight hi um so this is our first meeting after break so we’re into the new year uh and we’re ready to um continue into you know the end of the 20 to 2021 school year um so i’m sure there were a lot of students like me who spent a lot of the break um working on college applications and getting the january first deadlines um deadline applications in uh but you know outside of that i hope uh everyone was able to have a um relaxing break um
34:12 um um in regards to uh yesterday i can echo um sarah you just said uh teachers were uh you know at the beginning of class kind of acknowledged the situation and um offered up time to discuss it because um anyway you look at it it is unprecedented uh so i appreciate um i appreciated that consideration uh by the teachers um so lots of work is currently being done on uh events in the future um so uh as a class officer we’re currently looking at things like our prom our senior show um
34:57 and our senior banquet and things like this because we have to look at it this far ahead to make preparations to have alternatives ready um and things like that so that’s what we’ve really been busy doing um urinetown the musical originally scheduled for last spring um will be going on in february so i it will be in the beginning of february and i’ll have more details at our next meeting but it is continuing after a long postponement will be happening um and we are going back to school next week i understand
35:43 i think this will definitely make students happy the students enjoy you know in class learning it because it really
35:59 remote learning it’s just not the same and being in class uh is a good experience for the students um so yeah there are a lot of things um i i feel as though a lot of my reports are this is um you know this is what would be happening happening normally but this is what we’re doing instead and uh i feel like that is just kind of the time that is just the situation that we are in um so it is rather unfortunate but it i think that we are doing a good job of um rolling with the punches and you know still trying to stick to our um you know our annual traditions uh events and things like that
36:48 thanks dan um i i you know for one and sarah i see your your hand up too um you know i really appreciate your updates always and i appreciate that you you give that that look at what we would have been doing and now what we are doing and i think it really is a testament to um the way that the students are all building resiliency and you know as as a therapist i know that that’s our best bet on how we come out of this in a strong way and i think you know it’s it’s going to be just one more piece to your generation that’s going to make you guys really unique and strong um so i appreciate that i have one quick question for you actually sarah i’ll let you go because i’ll let you kind of piggyback on that and then i have a question will the will the performance of urinetown be
37:33 urinetown be urinetown be um virtual so that you know the community can can partake and see that and if so you know how will we find out about that yeah so we are going to be recording it all ahead of time um which is a certainly unique experience and i’m so we were kind of organizing things now and we’ll be recording the videos in the next few weeks um and i honestly don’t really know what to expect uh but um but yeah so the videos will be being compiled um you know you know put together into a uh a plot um and it will be released so um the more specific details on you know
38:20 where we can where people can find that um i’m not sure yet but you know once i know i will bring it to the committee perfect i’m really excited about that and then um i i wanted to see if we could as a committee make a formal written commendation um to dan for his service over the years in the contribution he’s made um and i don’t know if he’d want to but then he’d have it if as he kind of moves on his journey of applications i don’t know if anybody cares what we think but it’s an idea i that would mean a lot i mean i really appreciate that um and i i’m so glad to have had this
39:05 opportunity because this has been uh i mean really cool uh because only one student uh you know has uh has done this you know the past three years um and getting a deeper look into you know how everything is wrong has been really interesting so i think i speak for everyone i say would be our honor to do that um and then absolutely dan we fully expect to see you runs like soon-ish for school committee you know the ropes you know how this goes
39:45 no no um yeah absolutely dan um i’ll work with lisa offline and um and we’ll have a formal commendation written up for you and uh and so that you can have that as you move forward with applications and everything thank you so much certainly the least we can do to sort of a token of our appreciation and how much we think of you thank you i really appreciate that absolutely and actually my question was the same as sarah’s so um i no longer have one okay it’ll that’ll be really interesting though to see how it is you know without an audience um you know the differing nights of the week that that shows go off on so yeah yeah and there’s you know
40:30 uh you know written in you know stage directions of you know shake hand it’s like but right yep i’m sure you will i’m excited to see that yeah i can’t wait to see that way to be creative i think that’s great it’s just another example of you know you guys pulling together and finding solutions i think it’s awesome yeah absolutely great all right thank you dan always appreciate it all right so that leads us to public comment um if every anyone wants to make a public comment please use the raise your hand function and i will call on you when i call on you please state your name and address for the record um i see cassie kindle you have your hand up
41:16 yes thank you so much i would just like to say that in view of tonight’s busy agenda i’d like to respectfully request a second public comment opportunity at the end of this meeting so that parents and others can address their the articles why the thoughts are still fresh i believe that the community would appreciate this thank you all right that’s certainly noted and i can ask for a motion for that at the end of the meeting
41:47 okay i don’t see anybody else’s hands up so that will move us along to the approval of minutes um we just have one that ended up making it into our packet this week um then the next from 12 17 will be in our second meeting this month so can i get a motion to approve the minutes or actually are there any uh additions or notes on twelve three before i asked for um so i don’t have any auditions but i am i wasn’t here for that meeting so i’ll abstain from the vote okay
42:24 all right then can i have a motion to approve the minutes from 12 3 20 20. it’s almost
42:39 all right all in favor sarah gold yes megan taylor is abstaining uh emily barron yes sarah fox yes and david harris yeah all right that motion passes four to zero to one all right john that brings us up to the superintendent’s report i have metrics and reporting as our first uh point are you ready to do that are we taking these in order yes all right take it away um i’m just gonna make a couple anecdotal comments on things that have happened so far i think it was a year ago almost to the day when i was coming for my public interview here because i was referencing people needing to miss the
43:26 epiphany tree burning at the beach in order to attend the public interview and i was touring the high school with mr bauer and i saw urinetown as the musical and i think i might have even chuckled with dan saying i’m glad that that musical will have passed and maybe in the first year of the new superintendent it’ll be charlie brown or snow white or something like that but i’m glad that they’re able to uh continue with that and i too look forward to the show and speaking of show i will share my screen and we’ll go through the metrics
44:07 yes yes okay great um so the two things that i’m going to talk about tonight are covid decision making uh in communication uh today we’re going to look at two tools tools that will help us determine and also communicate our district’s new response to cova the first is going to be a decision dashboard and at the december school committee meeting you all requested visibility into the factors and the metrics that we would use to determine which learning model we will implement in the schools and that’s simply really a distinction between when are we in remote learning
44:53 and when are we in hybrid and the goal of that is to clarify the factors which influence that decision making to explain the complexity inherent in this it’s not as simple as crossing a threshold and to share a construct that will help guide this discussion moving forward and then the second one is some families have requested that classroom level alerts be sent when a positive covet id case is presented in the goal of my presentation tonight is one to validate uh the request in the very real and rational place that that comes from i certainly understand the request and why parents want that information
45:39 information information and to explain the risks inherent in sending those more granular notifications and offer an alternative into the case data that does not uh create stigma and i’ll speak to each of those so before this presentation of what i am about to share with you the following groups were part of the process in developing them certainly the reopening committee which is all the building principles the district administrative leaders representations of cpac and metro the board of health the teachers union and parents the superintendent’s health and safety advisory committee which certainly has
46:25 our public health director doctors and nurses parent so that group got to see and weigh in on these school committee was each afforded the opportunity to see both of these uh prior to us uh i believe leaving for the holiday break and then our partners at the marvel head board of health first thing is going to be the decision dashboard and this week i don’t know if it’s because i’m bored but i spent three and a half hours at the cambridge public school school committee meeting because their superintendent had put forward this schools and the path to zero
47:11 moving them from potentially six foot distancing to three foot distancing and one thing in that that caught my attention was schools should use metric schools should use metrics of community spread as general points of information and not on off switches for opening or closure and sometimes i think we want to simplify and say okay if this happens then that happens and with covid and these decisions and you’ll see as i bring the metric forward that there are a number of factors at play and not necessarily one single factor that can ultimately make the decision
47:53 so the three main questions that drive the decision-making around these models one is there evidence of transmission in our schools two is staffing at any school adequate to continue our in-person operations and three has the board of health indicated that in-school learning is safe or unsafe and so here’s the metric and at first glance it’s overwhelming but i’d like to take you through the steps and the components of it to hopefully better explain what you’re seeing first is the time and status at the top and so there’s a general timeline of where we are in the year and then what modality of learning we’re
48:39 in and so going back to november 30th we were in hybrid the 7th the 14th to 21st uh we went into remote and then the fourth this week we’re in remote next part of the metric is the public health information and so what is the town color threshold and you can see we have consistently been yellow what is the town positivity rate we’ve gone two six three eight four three four one two three nine what are the average cases and uh again you can see the numbers across there and is there any evidence of in-school transmission the next part i think is very significant because as we get to the
49:25 bottom i’ll further explain but moving forward some of these decisions will not be the district decision barring some sort of a catastrophic rise across the community or inability for the district to function but would be made at the school level so can the high school staff safely the building and you see each of those keller color metrics for the schools and in the weeks that we’re in remote learning clearly the staffing levels are appropriate the bottom is where i really think the logic for our decision making comes in so at any point we’ll pause into remote
50:12 if any of the following are true if there’s evidence of in-school transmission and that’s determined with our work with our lead nurse in the board of health the staffing levels are deemed read by that school’s principal and again this is a random
50:33 figure that it would be greater than 10 of the faculty and staff are out for that day that’s very nuanced because for example at the middle school they have two permanent subs but they have teams of teachers and so if there are a certain number of teachers on a given team at a grade level out mr fox might determine that he does not have adequate staffing for the middle school to be open uh that day and so those would be building level decisions and then the board of health or the school committee compels us to go remote based on rates of change increase in cases 0 to 19 or capacity concerns and so i’ve tried to incorporate the things
51:21 that i heard school committee asking me particularly the 0 to 19 and capacity rates of change but it isn’t again that singular factor that if this happens then this is the decision several pieces go into that and then the other piece the other side of that is looking at um we will attempt full day to remain in hybrid if many of the following are true and as you can see no evidence of in-school transmission the marblehead yellow status the average case below 50. 0-19 case rates are not escalating local hospital capacity rates are not deemed critical
52:07 deemed critical deemed critical staffing levels are green as measured by the principles or a new unforeseen impactful dynamic has not developed and so this uh is the decision making dashboard that i think you have been asking for and i will say on the principles listserv principles superintendents listserv as of last night people are asking this question still are any of you using a dashboard or a series of metrics for going remote or remaining in hybrid and so this is the proposal that i’m putting out as the basis uh for our decision making
52:53 do you want me to pause here for questions or to move forward into case tracker i’ll ask for any questions megan you have a few um john can you actually go back a slide i can so so um so this is really helpful thank you for this um and you’re right it is a little bit overwhelming looking at it for the first time with all the bubbles but i do like you know that you’re that we’re tracking it you know over time too so i i think that’s helpful um one of the questions you know we talked about this a little bit in terms of the staffing piece but it does need to be building specifics so i you know i think that makes complete sense i guess my question is though
53:38 though though how do we kind of translate that to notifying parents um you know because i’d hate to be in a situation where it’s you know seven o’clock in the morning we’re like hey you know we’ve got to go remote today um and then also in terms of implementation on that you know would we would every school be in the position where they could literally switch like that to that full remote schedule because i know in the past we’ve kind of taken a few days to to get into that situation that is certainly the goal is that if it’s made at the building level if a building determines then they would have the capacity to move into their remote schedules and i know that nan has been
54:24 working with building principles to make sure uh that they’re ready to do that and everyone’s favorite word immediate pivot to a remote schedule and yeah the last thing we want to do is be sending out a school messenger call at 6 30 in the morning or 5 30 in the morning saying hey we’re not going to be open village it would hopefully be something that might be able to be predicted but it can’t be guaranteed predicted okay okay um and the other question i had i don’t know if it’s a question or an observation but the piece um with the you know moving into a more
55:12 more closer to a full day hybrid um i guess for me this one is just still a little um i guess i’m hoping we can make this a little bit more clear as we continue to work through it um you know just i think it’s a little bit unclear on when we say many of the following are true like that’s just hard hard for me to kind of say well is it is money for me is different is a different many for you is it all of them have to be are there some of these do we need to prioritize some of them um and also i i guess i question on the local hospital capacity um how do we deem what is a critical number you know so i guess just being a hundred percent clear on on some um you know making sure every every point is clear i appreciate that megan and there were
55:59 originally numbers next to that um and i had feedback that those numbers uh really are not as helpful because those rates change and so you might put that okay it’s 85 but is it both hospitals at that and what if one hospital is at 75 but the other is at 95 are you going to average the two and so the pushback was it’s not clear unless you start delineating by hospital and actually someone in an earlier meeting today raised the question about our proximity to boston that even though the local hospitals might have
56:45 capacity concerns uh the boston hospitals wouldn’t so is that really a metric that you would want to use to make that determination right i agree with that tara tara so to kind of grow in that a little bit i you know that many word is it is it a majority is that what we’re looking for that like because that’s simple to say because some a majority you know would be easy to kind of clarify but um as far as the hospital critical level goes um i know that there there was a recent meeting with the town officials with the ceos of beverly and north shore um hospital and
57:32 those ceos at that meeting labeled or declared um or would i’m saying in this type of situation if if the ceos of these hospitals are coming to our town and declaring critical levels i think that’s what that would my assumption is that is what that is if we’re approached by these facilities as a town that says we’re approaching critical levels that that would be a factor it’s not just us determining what their critical mass is on their own so i’m assuming at least um and then just for clarification where it reads 0-19 case rate as are are not escalating i’m almost positive that is um the where the state breaks down the metrics of the
58:17 age groups the age group of 0 to 19 year olds which would be the demographic that we service um but i just i think for some people who don’t obsessively track it the way i do they might not realize what that’s referencing um and are you looking at a an increase of 50 for that um we had not specified okay that’s greater than 50 so i didn’t know um so for those items you know i think that this is a great start but if we’re depending going back to full day hybrid on these other items i would suggest adding those items to the cat crate case tracker as well okay um so that like for instance if one of the
59:04 factors is 0 to 9 19 age bracket add that line in um so that people who are following this to kind of plan their lives and prepare themselves okay we are two full-time working parents from home do i need to start kind of getting my ducks in a row is this likely coming our way don’t have to then go jump around to the state website to find out where the zero to 19 cases like it’s one stop shopping okay is my thought um so i think that this is a very useful tool um but i would i would suggest or it’s my belief that you know first of all i don’t i i worry about this jumping on a daily basis i understand the reason that you’re saying if you don’t have the staff to supervise
59:51 and teach children we don’t have the staff it’s just it is what it is but i’m very cautious about this idea that
1:00:00 you know families could be surprised suddenly by this um so that is a concern to me but more so you know emergencies happen we have to shut down for a day or so here but i do believe any closure that’s longer than you know x y z ds i don’t know if it’s three if it’s five whatever it is but i mean move to remote for any longer than a certain period of time in my mind would be a policy decision um what like in that what is our policy for entering a remote setting for a period of longer than so many consecutive days and in my mind in that would be the school committee purview and i really think that we
1:00:48 are overdue as a school committee for setting a policy of at what point do we transition to and through what mechanism do we transition to remote learning and in my mind that mechanism would be a discussion in a public meeting with a recommendation from john with an outline of what what’s behind that recommendation to include public interaction because those people are stakeholders and then a vote from the school committee to say we will be entering into remote learning for this period um i just want to be very cognizant of you know when we went into remote learning in the spring this was not a local decision it was a
1:01:34 state-directed order of the governor school committees didn’t need to vote i mean it was ordered but as we choose it town by town case by case i do think that we as a school committee need to develop a policy of what constitutes a reason to go remote for more than you know after three to five days it’s no longer an emergent situation and i think it needs to happen in a public meeting the decision with a weigh-in from the stakeholders
1:02:10 so i actually think that that is taken care of in the supplemental policy that we passed um at the beginning of the school year so that abc i feel like i’m leaving out another letter in there um emergency supplemental the coveted one um there is language within that one that talks about um i should have printed it um about the superintendent with the um advice and consent i believe is the verbiage of the school committee will make determinations and then it kind of delineates a few different things um and i i think that
1:02:56 within there is the is the verbiage about a longer term closure like that um and i think we’ve done that i think the high school obviously that piece we did not vote um but we did vote at our last meeting to affirm that that john was to use the metrics and as guidance for this week um so you know i think we’re not we’re not that far off on on where kind of that policy puts us um and that if we can stick to that um i just think that there’s no i think that this whole conversation and this whole dashboard
1:03:42 there’s no policy that we can put in that says at this point this point and this point you know will go remote for three days like i think that’s been this conversation the whole time that it’s just not as simple as that well and i that’s i agree a hundred percent with that that’s that’s not what i’m saying at all i think the issue i’m coming from is when the decision was made that we would go remote a week before in a week after school vacation there was no advise and consent from the school committee um and that piece was an important piece and not just because it does fall under our purview in that policy but more so because doing it at a school committee
1:04:29 meeting gives the public a chance to see what are the pieces that are walking into it what is going on and gives them a chance to enter into a dial a discussion or a statement if you will of what their feelings are i want to make sure that we are making these decisions um with that policy in mind um if it needs some more clarification if we just need to adhere to it more so but it was not made that decision was not made um with a vote but or with advice advise and consent of the school committee well i think we did give our consent if we didn’t want this those weeks to go remote we would have voted against it
1:05:15 we didn’t vote to the week prior sarah there was no for those two and a half days no we did not but for this one we didn’t other than yourself none of us knew that was even going out until we found out through the public
1:05:29 so i’m you know i’m not going to rehash that um because that has kind of you know been apologized for and you know and i you know i think i i feel i’m frustrated because i think underlining this or you know kind of under underlying this um this conversation is the reopening committee and that you know i feel like since the fall there’s been a push pull with this with that committee that you know it’s it’s like being in a goldilocks thing like you know sometimes at first we were too cold we weren’t being used enough now we’re too hot we’re being used too much and you know so as as the lone representative on that committee i actually would
1:06:15 actually would actually would like to ask for another another school committee member to join me on that committee um i think it would be helpful i think you know sarah you’ve sat on multiple committees within the reopening realm um so you know i think it would be completely appropriate for megan to step onto that committee as vice chair um to and and you know and just to support the view of the school committee a little bit more robustly as well um because i definitely try to sit in those meetings and speak on behalf of school committee but you know i am my own person as well and you know i definitely don’t do that job perfectly so you know that that’s kind of my thinking on this and sort of where my
1:07:03 frustration with with the pushback from the committee has been emily
1:07:10 so i agree that we need to adhere to this policy or the policy that we did vote on for the emergency supplemental for this year i think it’s really important that we start doing this because um i feel like yes we haven’t been making some of or been able to you know advise and consent on some of these decisions so i think if there is a way that we can state now that going forward we will um go do it in a process that we’ve been asking for that we are provided the information in a public meeting and can vote to go into these longer remote sessions go back
1:07:56 into hybrid when that is the possibility also and i think it’s just really important for everyone to see how these decisions are made because they’re big decisions there’s a lot of information that goes into them and now that we have the dashboard we can kind of see more about what is you know making these decisions come about but i think being able to talk about them and have it presented to us and presented to the community i think that’s just gonna make things kind of go smoother and just you know be more on board on board so i don’t know how we do that but i think um
1:08:42 um um we need to state from now on like this is what is going to happen because we’ve said it in a policy i don’t know megan um i think it was really good that you referenced that policy because we put it together kind of in the heat of the moment back in back in um august i think it was or early september so i’m glad that you referenced that and i just went back and and reread it so um you know i concur with sarah and emily and i think you know i’ve kind of been saying the same thing for a while now like i think that reopening committee is uh vital absolutely because of the breadth of representation that’s on it um but really let’s let’s use it um you know to vet those options and make those recommendations and then just so
1:09:27 we can have the conversation like emily and sarah said in public so that everybody’s aware i just think it will make i think it’ll just make the process smoother also for all of us um and sir i’d be happy to sit on that committee and and support you in that in that role too thanks emily i also if we can make sure moving forward like i know when you when you watch the board of health meetings helene gives a a recap to um
1:09:56 to the committee about you know everything that happens at those meetings and i’ll be honest like i i chimed into those meetings to get the recap if there’s a way to um get that out in a timely manner to the school committee that would be i think really helpful just so that as things trickle out to the community we can be all on the same page we can say you know i’m yep i heard about that and these are the reasons behind it and we can work as a team to kind of all know what’s going on okay i can do that and i can definitely especially with with the help of megan um you know can can get that out we just want to be careful that we’re not obviously emailing back and forth yeah information sharing is fine just
1:10:43 deliberation is not right emily did you have something i was just going to say adding another member of this school committee to that reopening committee i think that’s going to also be helpful so i just wanted i didn’t i forgot to say it when i spoke before but i think that is another great um solution so that we can get that information um and it’s not just like on you sarah for like having to you know just spread it out a little bit so great sorry i also forgot to mention something is that um and john correct me if i’m wrong here but i think the minutes for those meetings are going out on the re on the um on the back together marblehead website too so like you know for community and for school community i mean definitely reference that too because i know over the summer and fall
1:11:30 that was a good resource for myself also you know to look back but just so people know that that’s there sure absolutely all right all right i think we’re ready to move forward well i i guess that it’s not on the agenda for you to vote but based on the conversation first let me say that the conversation is very helpful for me particularly with the language uh because many was changed from most was changed from all and so your feedback there is helpful to me uh because language is important and i’m not trying to dodge but i’m also not wanting to give people a false sense of okay three out of five and he only had
1:12:16 two and then they made the recommendation to so i really think this decision logic is the biggest part of this uh graphic or information metric uh for people and so uh the increase in the case count and that conversation we’re going back to hybrid on monday is that something that the committee feels they want to endorse or vote on or recommend based on this conversation this evening public health metrics are released and i will anticipate a rise uh this week but i’m not sure that it will move us to not being
1:13:01 in hybrid but i want to put that out to the committee in case that that’s something before we move away from this they want to have a conversation about so i’m i’m 100 in favor of going back into hybrid uh this coming week i think the the conversation that i’ll draw from the conversation in the reopening committee over the the past at least two uh meetings that we’ve had is that evidence of in-school transmission piece is huge and the article that john referenced i’ll actually um i’ll try to remember to send that out to the committee um because it was a really it was a great article um and then there’s another article that
1:13:47 a that a community member had or a website that a community member had given to me this past weekend that i’ll uh send out as well um and so for myself and and from where i said yeah that that evidence of in-school transmission is huge i think the piece with the building and the staffing is the kind of that that variable that very well could toy with in-person versus remote uh the most in my mind um because although i really really do not and have not throughout all of this want to be reactionary and so that the idea of an in-school trans waiting until there’s an in-school transmission makes me nervous but we have a lot of data at this point and we didn’t in september and so
1:14:33 the longer we’ve gone with this and that that evidence of in-school transmission on a large scale isn’t there either and so i feel very confident in our mitigation practices and that we can safely re-enter the schools next week having taken a breath around the holidays and around all the stress and the surges and everything taken that breath to kind of rewrite the system and push forward hopefully very successfully um you know as we move into the spring okay yeah sarah i i agree with you there i would i absolutely support um getting the kids back in in school next week for sure and that transmission in school transmission is a key uh key piece of information i think i agree
1:15:19 can i just ask to clarify a question john so are you are you saying that it would it would be most not many or are you saying that you can’t pick a word i can’t pick a word is what i was saying is i changed it to many probably uh yesterday or even today because the word just wasn’t resonating with me i think it was all at one point and i thought well that it’s not likely ever to be all okay i just wanted i was just trying to figure that out and can then we just state for families i i know it’s very hard because i think teachers can call in up into a certain hour or amount of time before school so that piece of having sufficient staffing is hard but i’m wondering if we can just like for
1:16:04 anybody that’s at home with particularly the younger kids that’s really worried that wait a second could i get really get an all-call at 7 30 when i’m packing everybody in the car that was home that day that there would be a like hopefully maybe a time deadline by when the call would be made each day like you won’t get a call past xyz time and or where they would go to for that information yeah i think those are great questions i i will work uh with reopening on monday to determine uh that time and the notification system that we would employ okay the immediate one would be school messenger with a robocall okay and just speaking from from my vantage point of having come through the
1:16:51 holidays and and sat on this committee but also working in a school um you know obviously there can be sort of just a a mass need for call outs in any given day and that’s kind of unforeseeable but i think the way that i foresee this moving into the future is that it’s going to be a buildup of of these pieces that you know that as we did before the break kind of seeing the system become more and more taxed seeing more and more quarantines needed and and people calling out more regularly um you know i again i there absolutely could be a point where we would get a call at the last minute but i’ve i think that there’s
1:17:38 going to be oh the ability for a longer dialogue or a longer lead up to you know mhs isn’t looking great you know it’s been a tough week last week we’re going to see you know where we’re at this week that that those types of communications to be able to be um kind of pushed out
1:18:07 um can i just say one last thing about the slide previous do you mind going back so under the attempt full hybrid many um but no matter what it’ll be presented to the school committee for a vote correct
1:18:26 our consent if we were to switch to a full day hybrid any kind of change to that oh yes if we are going to dramatically change the in person hybrid model from half day to full day or an am cohort pm cohort or reduce the distancing from six foot to three foot that dramatically alters what we presented to the community the reopening plan and so i can envision that not only would that have to go out to school committee for a vote but we would have to offer families an opportunity to revisit their model choice particularly with the distancing i just wanted to make sure because on the other one it said you know the board of health or school committee
1:19:13 asked us to go remote but on this one it’s not on there i’m just trying to make it clear everywhere that we it’ll it’s not just a decision that’ll be made there’ll be you know process to it
1:19:31 so just in sticking with that um that policy um can i ask for a motion to affirm john’s decision to enter back into a hybrid model not starting monday the 11th so moved megan moved second emily seconded any further discussion on that
1:19:56 all right i would like to see the next next slide first and how we’re gonna hear how we’re gonna handle transmission or cases in the schools but but we can always um um all right well sorry um if we need to revisit it we can revisit it um sarah gold yes megan taylor yes david harris yes sarah fox yes and emily baron yes all right thanks guys that motion passes five to zero all right john take it away all right put your seat belts on we’re gonna move right through this in terms of the dashboard because i know that you have seen it some so families have requested that the classroom level alerts and i talked
1:20:42 about um i very much understand that but want to speak to why that isn’t always possible lots of our most of our all of our decisions for reopening have been grounded uh in these principles that we put in the reopening plan and you can see there of paramount importance uh is the safety of students and staff and i think we’ve done a really great job with mitigation efforts and safety practices in both classroom activities and co-curricular activities uh equity and fairness paired with responsibility to protect social emotional health of students and families and so we have grounded our decision in that as well
1:21:28 we tried to be uh transparent and communicate uh to the best extent possible and certainly even this evening some points uh have been raised uh where we can improve our communication efforts and i take that feedback and then the ability for voice and choice for families to be able to move at the quarter or the trimester breaks from hybrid to remote or remote to hybrid and so having this information i want to talk a little bit about stigma that if we get too granular with our notifications i worry that it could lead to social stigma
1:22:14 and that leads to labeling stereotyping potentially discrimination and other negative behaviors and so much of what goes into our work in kovid is based in the unknown generate sphere and so two examples that came to mind for me were smoking as a public health crisis and hiv aids and i just put some information there um of how social stigma impacted those through uh identification and then how people use the identification information um um
1:22:59 the cdc advises that community leaders like boards of health in school one bag nope yep sorry sorry can prevent stigma uh by maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of those uh who may be part of uh being investigated or being positive that coupled with safety concerns we inform individuals who are considered close contacts and so i’m hoping that this case tracker will help people to see kind of a linear view over time
1:23:45 of the cases week by week where we are seeing cases and then over time the total number of cases that impact our in-person students in-person staff remote students or remote staff
1:24:04 the concern for stigma for me is our cohorts are very small and so in-person students uh i was at glover today and walking around there could be a classroom of eight learners and so if i send a letter to a cohort of eight families that a student in your child’s class it then isn’t very difficult to ask your son or daughter who hasn’t been in class and again that information may happen but i think that with our more general notifications and this tracker we will hopefully get to the information or the clear information that people are hoping for
1:24:56 so this tracker john put it out to reopening first and there was a significant conversation around the data that was in it and even and even this data being able to identify people and the concern around that so um you know again just as kind of an overview of of how this has been vetted um you know there’s a lot of support behind this um but it’s some of the concerns were absolutely talked about as well sarah were you about to say something um um of course now i get a cough yes um so i hear what you’re saying and i can see it from that side but
1:25:42 but but there’s this is not i mean like i like i’ve made the point before we send home letters for lice we’ve sent home and you want to be a stigma i mean you’re the be the mom of kids that like just gave 12 other kids life so you know it happens but um this is we send home letters for strep for for lice for all these different things that aren’t you know to the level of covid it it doesn’t make sense to me that we wouldn’t notify a family that there’s a case of covid in your class and the reason behind that is there are families that are walking the line that have identified how important
1:26:28 in-person learning is for their their child their child and they’re really rolling the dice because they may have other medical needs in their home or they care for an elderly grandparent but they’re walking this line of sending their students to get them the benefit of in-person learning knowing that when this comes up they will have a conversation with their healthcare provider with grandma’s healthcare and make the decision getting too close it’s too dangerous for our family um and i think by not sharing that information we’re actually making in-person learning not accessible to more students like if that was a letter that we were going out i’ll give the example in my own personal life then i could actually
1:27:15 think about sending my older children to school but without that information it’s too great of a risk in our particular situation so i think by bringing up out these letters we actually could open up in-person learning to more students um and i think that has to be our goal um i think you i outlined the priority on the slide one one or two slides ago that said the priority is the safety and health of our students um and giving this information does make students who are walking that line safer in my mind
1:27:55 can i just comment on that so um sarah as you know i am one of those families that live hang in that balance you know we live that every day and so i’m just gonna play devil’s advocate um for a sec just to add to the conversation because i just think this situation is very different from a normal year where kids especially younger kids you know are so much more close you know working closely together right now we’ve got the protocols in place we’ve got masking we’ve got social distancing those things do not you know don’t exist in a normal classroom and then we have the contract tracing so if anyone has been a close contact those people are notified privately so i guess that’s the piece that i say like you know i have to also
1:28:41 take into consideration to the conversation yeah go ahead david well i would say that first and and thanks dr barkey for um you know pulling this together and and leading this conversation and clarification and i would second that you know we we make available the um schools in the path to zero which i think is a very comprehensive document that you know has been put together by the brown uh school of public health and the um uh edmund safra center for ethics at harvard university in new america has a lot of really good information in
1:29:27 there and i’m no more of a uh expert in this but we all need to sort of come together and look at the science and and look on look at look at what’s happened and i and i think it was important that at the beginning dr bucky did talk about that you know we’ve learned a lot from march when we didn’t know much about the pandemic and how to maintain it and that um you know the metrics of the community shouldn’t be used as this on off point i think i think that’s a key point because um we’ve really done a lot to make our school safe and so i just wanted to emphasize and second also what what um
1:30:15 megan said because one of the key pieces of of this report again and i think we all know this and and we all have heard from michelle cresta the amount of um funds that have been invested in making our schools safe and what we’re what we’re doing on a daily basis but you know achieving um building safety uh within community spread and and uh the most important elements of conflict infection control certainly as we’ve just said it’s universal masking it’s hand in bathroom hygiene it’s air exchange it’s social distancing and it’s robust quarantine and contact tracing policies so
1:31:02 i think in that context as dr bucky said if a situation arises i i think we have those things in place and i think people that have been in contact with someone will be notified and i don’t think we should be creating uh you know this additional community fear um that and identifying you know who has coveted and where the covet is and what classroom they were in i think we need to rely on the the professionals that we have in place marblehead board of health um all of the people uh our school nurses and everybody that’s actively involved and when we look at the the metrics that now
1:31:48 we’re doing it on a school-by-school basis so if we have an instance at say the coffin school we’re not going to close the high school but we’ll notify the appropriate people and um i certainly have the trust in in the staff and um board of health that that those controls are in place and i think that’s the best one of the best ways we can do is to is to make sure um you know we’re going forward and i think this dashboard at a high level um does give people some some information and i think it also john you know when if it’s cases to date you know a total of 25 students in person and 17 staff i mean
1:32:34 let’s look at that i mean um i i think it reinforces that schools are in fact safe a lot of effort has gone in to make sure schools are safe and um i just don’t know if um if if we need to do anything more than just make sure people are informed make sure that we know what the metrics are and make sure that you know we have these protocols in place in the schools and the last piece i’m sort of jumping back a little bit but um dr bucky i think there are some opportunities also there continues to be this emphasis on um
1:33:20 which groups where the priorities should be first you know is is it k to five and then is it is it six to eight and then is it high school and there does seem to be some some science and um literature and discussions around the the focus on um the the needs of of the younger students and getting them back to school first and maybe there could be a situation in our district where you know the high school is is in remote but we still have um you know k-3 in school as an example just putting that out there i’ll say david that those conversations are ongoing
1:34:07 and certainly if it were up to me as a singular decision maker i would have our students back in school with limited distancing five days a week the factors that make that possible are out of our control and so the reopening committee talks about can we go to four and a half foot distancing can we go to three could we bring our kindergartners first and second graders and those are ongoing conversations but they engender transportation questions they uh people uh speaking to sarah’s point that when people made a decision whether to be in person or hybrid they did so with an understanding
1:34:53 of six foot distancing so if we make that change are they going we i think it would be fair to put that back out and let them make the selection oh i don’t want to go back for that so it’s not and i really appreciated the cambridge public schools superintendents it’s not that light switch and so the conversations have not ended we continue to look for ways to bring more learners in for longer periods of time but we are also up against several variables that we have to figure out in order to make that possible right and i and i thank thanks for that and i and i think that that’s the hard part for me as a committee of committee of five and then certainly
1:35:39 we have the support of all the other groups that make these decisions the reopening committee and your committees and people that are reviewing it and the administrative staff is to try and try and understand what the desires are of parents and and not actually knowing um who what the comfort level is with parents that want their kids back in school and then also balancing that of course with the safety of our staff um that are in our schools which i think is in line with those elements of infection control that have been put in place but it’s a
1:36:24 difficult balance but it just um seems to me um that that there are it’s it’s hard for me to make a decision for a community of 3 000 students
1:36:43 where parents want their kids back in school or parents have the option of keeping their kids in remote learning we are giving parents both options and it’s not it’s not one or the other and um i’m not sure
1:37:07 well i i get i’m not sure that we’ve really um been able to measure what the majority of parents want for their for their students and i and i don’t know that i have the answer to that i i just want to jump on megan’s comments because those actually megan’s comments actually were almost verbatim what the lead nurse dana mcmahon stated about about why it would be drilling down too much um and why it’s really not necessary and i think it’d be a different conversation if we were seeing transmission in school as we do when there’s lice in a classroom or strap in a classroom but we’re not seeing any anywhere any kind
1:37:53 of large transm large-scale transmission in schools when mitigation efforts are in place and so i think i you know i understand my kids in i worry about it but uh you know it fears one thing data is another so i guess i’m really coming at this from two angles but but one of them is and i wonder if it might be helpful to ask the remote families what it would take for them to come feel safe bringing their students back because i’m hearing from a lot of um parents that are in my situation that this is the piece that it’s this notification piece that if they knew they could make their threshold to when they could pull their children back that
1:38:39 they could give their children this opportunity that all of your children have um and it’s that piece but but i think that’s a little bit of an oversimplification unfortunately though because i think to john’s point about stigma is that the concern is that if we start letting people know that there’s a case then people are going to stop reporting their cases and so we’re actually going to be making things less safe than than where we currently are because we have a system of trust built where we can have families report and then have them be able to con to remain anonymous as as quite frankly our health department and our nurses are
1:39:25 are ethically demanded to maintain the hipaa stuff on that so you know i think i think there’s i actually think putting out too much information weighs us into a bit of a legal piece too um well actually the covet provisions aren’t you know there’s a lot of re re-ruling on hipaa and kobet and all of that so i think that that isn’t as much of a factor as actually you think it is but um the p the piece is honestly you know when a student’s missing for 14 days or they show up in our remote kids class for 14 days it’s really not hard to put two and two together i mean the families are figuring it out after the fact that the issue here is they’re i think they’re looking for the schools to tell them before they said yeah you know johnny comes home and
1:40:11 says you know sally was out for the last four you know week or whatever i mean it’s happening it parents are happening we’re identifying it it’s just not coming in a forthright manner the way the the strep letter the flu letter all of that i mean last year when we got the flu letters we kept our kids home um because that was our family’s need listen it affects a small population of students and um families in that’s what it comes down to so i will say i put the question out to the superintendent’s health advisory group and to a person the former commissioner of public health for the commonwealth a college health uh director physicians nurses
1:40:59 uh deanna mcmahon andrew petty no one recommended giving these letters out for the expressed reasons that have been given and i agree with you sarah fox 100 people are figuring it out that’s what they do but it’s different than the school announcing it and then confirming it so i’ll assume now that our mindset has changed the the flu in the strep letters in the future will stop john correct if i’m wrong actually i’m not sure why you would make that parallel well if we’re not sending a letter home about one of the deadliest diseases we’ve seen in 100 years i have to assume we’re not going to send it home about the flu or strap or lice which isn’t
1:41:46 even a public health threat deanna actually in that meeting expressed kind of some i don’t know what the right word is concern or or kind of like yeah that those letters are maybe not the most useful and the most necessary at this point so then we’ll discontinue sending those letters so yeah i think we can certainly revisit that policy and i and i also think two i think it was megan who made this point we when we are sending those letters it’s because our kids are functioning in a normal manner and they’re on top of each other next to each other
1:42:31 in a table and they’re you know wiping their hands and they’re going to the bathroom and washing their hands and then they’re not doing it for another couple of hours at all incredibly different circumstances than what the reality of in-person learning is this year and they’re also there they’re unmasked they’re eating together they’re spending six and a half hours together as opposed to the the you know four that they that they currently are a couple days a week well i think that i think the things that you’re talking about you know aren’t subject to the kinds of i mean i’m not a professional and i mean lice was brought up i don’t know how it gets spread but um once again there’s been a lot that’s been done in the last six months around covid social distancing wearing mass air
1:43:17 exchange and i just think it’s a different kind of thing i think we also know more about the flu and maybe that will be be handled differently but i i think um yeah i i think these numbers this this screen that’s in front of us also just continues to to speak for itself i mean the students just aren’t just aren’t super spreaders and you know 44 cases to date and 25 of them are in-person students and i think we have pro the proper protocols in place that if they’re if there is close contact and people need to go in quarantine um that will happen but i think with the masks and the social distancing and and
1:44:03 what we’re doing now is is probably better than when students are not in school and um you know we’re down at seaside with no social distancing and no masks on so um you know i saw that in the fall and um and we have cohorts and we can clearly identify so i you know and i have confidence that if it’s a staff person or when we had a custodian that you know we knew that the person hadn’t been in the building for the last seven days and then they tested positive and there there had been no close contact because all of that background work was done by the staff and dr bucky to make sure that contact tracing
1:44:48 you know was in place to um to make sure and and then you know if people needed to be in quarantine so i mean i it’s um and if we were functioning in a normal way like no distancing no masks and just in classrooms as some countries have attempted to do and and very quickly have had to pull remote again we you would be knowing about it in a classroom because everybody would be close contacts and everybody would be being contacted by the board of health and the school nurses and so when you are a close contact you are contacted and told not who has it but that there is a case and you and you were identified as a close contact similar to when a letter
1:45:36 goes home about lice or about strep or the flu saying you’re essentially your kid is a close contact just different language because you know all of this is is that we’ve got a lot of different language around around the way we report things at this point yeah so i just that point i was going to make i just want to clarify that we will no longer as a district be sending out emails that say there’s a case at coffin there’s a case at the high school you will see where the cases are within the marblehead public school system but there will be no notification or noting in what school these cases are i guess i i’m not hearing that that’s a decision that’s been made in this meeting i guess you know is it something that should be discussed maybe but i i didn’t hear that decision being made and i personally don’t i don’t think it can
1:46:22 be made without you know taking advice from from john’s health and safety committee and the health i could have totally misunderstood i thought this tracker was taking the place of those letters no no okay no and that conversation actually did occur at reopening as to whether or not again in in to not disclose too much about where these cases are and where they’re happening would that would this tracker take the place of those letters and that kind of it fell off it you know that it’s i mean this is an addition to that i right and and i thought this tracker you know to be perfectly honest sarah i mean you i know you
1:47:07 we talked about this uh back before the holidays that it would be helpful to have you know a dashboard of sorts and um this is you know part of the dashboard of what metrics on the previous slide we’re going to be tracking and then if you take um you know you have the state you have the the layer of the state of the massachusetts and then the total cases in marblehead and now we’re giving another layer here within the public schools so so i thought that was a definitely a you know a good response by the superintendent to something that that you asked for and and i think this is beneficial i think it hopefully it will give people um you know a better
1:47:53 understanding and as you say to to make informed decisions about how they want to um approach uh sending their sending their kids to school and and their comfort level or or not um so i honestly read this as a replacement to those letters and that we were going to be getting less information not more so as long as those letters are still going out when they i mean obviously i would prefer there’s a case in your classroom but in the absence of that there’s a case in the in this school is an important letter i thought this literally was replacing those letters that was actually a conversation reopening and no that was not communicated as a replacement mechanism
1:48:38 i think this goes also to exactly like david was just saying the the this the overall stress on the system that we talked about you know at our last couple of meetings where it you know if we’ve got a bunch of teachers and quite frankly a bunch of students and because the stress on our remote system as well is a thing so you know this this goes to to highlighting and keeping people abreast of where is our district at how much stress are we under what are we facing and it also pulls out you know i think one of the problems and the frustrations i have with that 0 to 19 reporting from the state level is that it’s 0 to 19. like i would much rather see it take out
1:49:24 most of the college students at 19 because i think especially for a little while it was kind of confounding our data a bit and making it appear differently i think that’s evened at this point but you know i think this then given the 0 to 19 statistics and this digs down a little bit deeper onto where we’re at as our school district with the with the children who who attend our classes so i just wanted to say that i really like this dashboard um i think it i know other districts are doing something similar and that’s kind of what guided this um and so i think we can continue to do
1:50:10 that and see what other districts are doing and reach out and say how are you dealing with this and if in something happens within school transmission i mean how do you deal with that since we luckily knock on one haven’t had to deal with that but other districts have so maybe we reach out to them how do you make it known or whatever so that might just be a good way to kind of keep um looking at what other places are doing and kind of you know take knowledge from them and use it for us as well to keep everybody informed about what is happening um and i think it’s important to highlight emily just on top of that is that if we change our distancing in our classrooms there will be a lot more
1:50:56 information and contact tracing going on because we will have you know all of these official quarantines they they will impact how much information is is given to to individuals in classrooms because we will have more of them right um and i just wanted to go back to what david said a while ago about getting our youngest students into the building more and the need for that and just kind of where we are or where you john and your teams are getting to that point yeah it’s an ongoing conversation on what
1:51:43 vehicle or what means is it better to do shorter amounts of time every day so for example kindergarten in one two and a half hours an am cohort uh monday through friday two and a half hours a pm cohort um or is it better a full day in the current model that we have the tuesday so teaching and learning i know nan is uh engaging with that group to have these conversations all of them have the inevitable yes but when you are looking at a particular model so they’re weighing uh the benefits of
1:52:28 that but everyone is you know as i’ve said before if it were up to me we would be back in person full-time full days it’s just the capacity and the logistics to get there are not possible right now and so we have to chip away at those variables where we can make some headway to either increase the frequency or the duration of time one last quick thing john about the reopening piece is i i would like to see sooner than later kind of there start to be a plan looked at for how we’ll approach next school year
1:53:14 um as it is right now we don’t have any vaccine approved for definitely i think children under 12 but possibly children under 16. and i think it’s probably unlikely that we’ll get one approved for those for those younger students in enough time to implement it for the fall hopefully we’ll find other mitigation ways to get more students in for the full day or the whole day or whatever but we will still have a demographic of students that will not be able to return so i want to make sure we’re starting that dialogue and planning now and not waiting till you know july or whatever i’d rather have the plan ready and say we don’t need this and we’re ripping it up but i i think that you know learning from the past let’s try to get that playbook ready because i
1:54:00 think it will be highly unlikely that we will not have a need for remote programs in the fall i would say the call with the commissioner today um he’s he sees full in person in schools in september as a hope and again i agree with you the vaccination would not be uh well there’s not a vaccination currently for our youngest learners but this is the same uh department of education that is gone from red towns and remote to red towns in person to six foot distancing to three foot distancing so it’s certainly
1:54:46 a commissioner and a department that is willing to look at planning for next year with the hope of full in person and that and i think that’s the goal and that will probably happen for the majority of students but there will be a measurable number of people that will need to be remaining in this remote format so i think we need to plan for that no matter what agree and i think it is an important note on that um i agree with everything you just said sarah and that when we once we have our adult population vaccinated that it becomes significantly easier then you know we know we can fit our students in at three
1:55:32 feet so school may not look normal next year but it’ll be a whole lot more normal than it is this year um where you know i am very very hopeful that we will have all of our students you know aside from the those the smaller contingent that needs to remain remote with all of our students back in the buildings you know they may need to be masked still but um you know all of them back in possibly distance to three feet and and full days um you know that’s i i talk to the health care professionals in my life and continue to read i think that that is a it seems to be a very realistic hope and maybe it’s that for that smaller population if we start planning this far ahead that we find a way to get them in in a manner that meets their high-end safety requirements maybe there’s a
1:56:19 group that has 10 you know 10 feet we i just think that we have to start planning now because there will be a group and it’s not going to be two kids that will require that so with the permission of the chair i’d like to jump an agenda item and do my calendar piece before we move to nan for the teaching and learning absolutely go ahead next slide um if i had a dollar for everyone that i say calendar to who either outright laughs at me or gets a look of terror because i guess there’s quite a history in the district with the academic year calendar and so i have begun working on the calendar and i just wanted to show you
1:57:06 a graphic of what i have done i’ve pulled out past district calendars to see how we have scheduled things i’ve done outreached other districts uh talked to newton uh brookline swampscott and wellesley swampscott and l wellesley superintendents both said third rail john academic year calendar new superintendent a void calendar which i didn’t think is comforting but it seemed to be in line with what i was hearing here the discussion started tuesday with the marvel educators association in terms of a start date for next year professional development days half days which i understand has a rich history here as do conferences
1:57:52 so those conversations have started in my past district that was all dictated by the collective bargaining agreement um and there’s more flexibility here uh than i was used to so i appreciated the conversation with mea on calendaring some of that for next year i’ve called on some community leaders for how the calendar has played out in the past and how certain things have been scheduled and so i put together a draft uh number one and i joke because in my former district the superintendent uh got up to draft 19 with a calendar that he was doing it is my sincere hope that i do not get to a
1:58:39 draft 19 but that i have something uh for you uh to look at at the i guess it’s the january 21st of the date wrong there uh january 21st meeting and that’s all it got on calendar unless there are questions great thank you i would just make the suggestion that we learn from this year and get as consolidated as we can um with getting as many days in as we can right from the get-go um and just take it from there thank you
1:59:22 all right then i will stop sharing my screen and and nan you can start sharing your screen welcome i hope you’re muted i got john a pair of socks two pairs of socks that says you’re muted on it so it seems to be the quote of the year um so happy new year everyone with all of that conversation that we have um just engaged in i i want to um add that uh during all of the school visits that john and i have been on this week there is such uh dedication and skillful teaching happening in classrooms so with all the conversations that we have about um you know going deeper into all of
2:00:10 this this work that that makes in person and remote learning happen i’m telling you it is uh marblehead teachers are just doing a phenomenal job um in very difficult circumstances so um that’s that’s the good news um on my on my side from teaching and learning but to give you a little background before i share my screen the department of education came out in late october with a request to superintendents and district leaders to create to complete a survey which um would allow them to get a picture of where our allocated time was being spent um in terms of teaching and learning
2:00:56 so i’d like to share with you um
2:01:03 can everybody see my screen great yes so here is um the the desc focus you can see that in blue the focus was to ensure that there was a daily teaching hour average of hours of 0.5 and 5.5 across the district so the 5.0 hours is for elementary and the 5.5 would be for middle and high school so um an average was created for our district and we were asked to enter data for our first fourth seventh and tenth grades for the state this is a sample of what we were asked to complete for each grade level
2:01:50 we were asked to share what we were doing um hour-wise for in-person instruction what time it was allocated for non-instructional time when kids were in person the remote synchronous instructional time remote asynchronous instructional time and remote non-instructional time so i worked with building leaders and we broke apart our schedules across the district and we completed this survey we met we received confirmation on november 12th that marblehead had met the expectations um given the parameter of the hours provided the
2:02:36 the the state then came out with an additional request in um late december and the new focus for this second survey they’re going to conduct is grounded in their their ongoing and growing concern around student social emotional health and well-being and they recited for us some concerning certain statistics around hospitalizations adolescent depression increase things that they’re seeing across the
2:03:22 commonwealth and so with this upcoming survey they are asking districts to ensure that students have at least 35 hours of live instruction over the course of 10 day period so that that is a combination of in-person and remote synchronous instruction so if you can see um remembering back to the first slide where we um the hours that were spent with asynchronous instruction counted towards that 5.0 and the 5.5 it no longer does so um
2:04:07 the work ahead is is making minor shifts to ensure that we get to that 35 hour across the district the second component of this new survey is that student all students must have an opportunity to interact each day with teachers so there are situations or have been such situations such as remote wednesdays when our students did not have access to an adult each day so um we have um received feedback from the mar for marblehead specific to our first survey
2:04:53 survey survey and where we need to make some changes in order to meet the requirements for the second survey and so the feedback from from deci was that marblehead needs to increase the average of overall additional minutes of live instruction needed per day across the districts is 27 minutes so again this is an average so across our district schools needed to increase live opportunities for instruction by 27 minutes so again meeting with principals and talking with teams it um has been
2:05:39 has been has been become abundantly clear that we are already meeting or exceeding most likely third the 35 hours because so many things have changed since that late october time when we submitted the initial data uh for example at the glover and coffin in order to get to that 27 minutes we are going to represent um a couple of changes one is uh working mask breaks so that we have mask breaks built into the schedule but now instruction will continue during those mass breaks and in actuality i’m hearing from principles that happened long ago that teach that kids came in they
2:06:25 adapted the resiliency of of kids are fun is phenomenal and so those instructional minutes have been happening for quite some time another addition will be 15 minutes the students will log on 15 minutes earlier in the afternoon for instruction so i believe they log in at 1 30. now at the glover and coffin they’ll be logging in more around um 15 15 minutes earlier most likely around 1 15. at the village they are going to also eliminate one of the mass breaks again kids are just not needing them as as much as they did when they had to transition and get and get acclimated to the new situation they will also be logging on um 15 early 15 minutes earlier for afternoon instruction
2:07:13 and they’re also adding in an additional live um allied arts block i’m gonna go back because i i didn’t include that when i spoke about the glover and coffin they will also be adding a synchronous integrated allied arts block for all students that are in the remote setting so that ensures that all of our students every day see a marblehead staff member veterans middle school their plan is to lengthen in person classes by reducing passing time same thing is going to happen at the high school we built a little bit more robust time in there to transition kids we weren’t sure how hot hallway transitions were going to happen
2:07:59 we wanted to make sure that there was time for that so that we didn’t have kids bottlenecking and insert at certain stairwells well again that’s been shifting for a while kids have gotten much better at it and and there’s no there is no longer that need for such a lengthy amount of time in between classes so that’s already been shifting um also at the middle school they will be changing dismissal from 12 to 12 15 which again that it has been a 12 15 dismissal i believe but uh i can’t remember matt fox explained that one to me but that that made perfect sense um and also adding friday afternoon advisory for all cohorts and so that will
2:08:45 will will um again ensure all students see an adult every day and also at the high school there is a plan to add two minutes per class on wednesdays to get us up to that 35 hours across the district so a lot of good thinking a lot of good things already in place and um the data is close if not at 35 hours the the new survey the new practices have to be in place by january 19th our principals assure me that many of them are already in place but the ones that are not in place will be starting next monday well
2:09:30 before the january 19th date and the second survey will be coming out for district leaders uh sometime in february for us to go back in and update um the information for the state so at this time i i can take any questions if you have any
2:09:51 sarah sarah um so i just did a little bit of quick math the requirement to add 27 minutes average per day of um because they’re looking at it over a 10-day period it looks like we were short 4.5 hours over that 10 period of live instruction which is about 13 under their target goal requirement is there a requirement to make that up or are we okay looking back as long as we need it from the point moving forward we’re yep there’s no requirement for making anything up we were told on november um 12th that we had met the given expectation okay yep they just moved the goal they post yeah you will yeah um
2:10:37 how does this pertain to live instruction at the high school for the remote cohort those some of those students um never ever have a live interface ever um which is another issue that i that i you know think we need to discuss but how does this requirement meet that so that’s a great question sarah and i followed up by asking the state directly i went to their hotline and asked that um this these requirements are only for your selected model of instruction so where we are a hybrid model that is the average that they take it is not for the students in the full remote model however in speaking with principals they
2:11:24 value the need for face-to-face time for all students and they are working to make that happen so i’m glad to hear that because we’ve identified the reason for this is because of that social emotional need and those students i would argue perhaps have a higher even need because they’re so isolated and i want to make sure that we’re meeting that and your your principals agree okay um does advisory count towards live instruction it’s it may not be count towards the live instruction but it counts towards that face-to-face time that the state is looking for okay i’m actually really happy to hear that i i just anecdotally in my own world i know that the advisory went from
2:12:12 daily down to twice a week at village and i know that my children get a really really um
2:12:21 that has played such an important role of their day and they were really sad to see that piece go away so i just want to make sure we don’t see that go away more because i know not every kid gets this but um i’ve seen the social emotional benefits of that advisory period yep and i think the teachers enjoy that as well yeah yeah so will we see more live instruction in that that of new material in that afternoon block because i i don’t see necessarily new material happening in that afternoon block um it’s a time to come together i’ve seen you know we do read aloud sometimes there’s new instruction depending on the grade level but as a whole i haven’t seen a ton of new new material presented in that block
2:13:09 are you are you talking about elementary yes so i um i’m not sure about what content is being covered at those times i’m just looking at it logistically for the hours of live instruction and it is considered a live instructional block i’m just not sure about what content is covered that would be where a question for principals okay and that’s probably you know too granular for us i just want to make sure we’re maximizing every minute these kids have with someone yep uh sarah uh sarah john didn’t sorry he’s trying to get my new button i i just wanted to jump in nan made this
2:13:54 point and i want to make sure that it was clear the way the state is doing this is a bit convoluted because they are taking grade 1 4 7 and 10 and the average so when nan says 27 minutes that is the average across the district so there could be a school that is at 36 hours another school that is at 31 and so they’re saying across your four grade spans there is an average of 27 minutes so they make it seem like that it’s 27 minutes across your entire district
2:14:41 uh they’re presenting it as 27 minutes across the entire district whereas it’s not all grade one all grade four all grade seven are all grade ten yeah i think it’s it’s i’m i’m actually surprised at that 27 number because i think you had sent out at some point a an email that had a list of all like all the schools in massachusetts and it sort of had purple and orange and comparing remote to asynchronous to synchronous and and in person and i you know it was a little difficult to read but it in the bar graphs it didn’t seem as though we as soon as we were doing far better than many and certainly within the realm of average
2:15:27 and quite frankly i think it seemed you know when i was looking i would compare to kind of the usuals that we compare to and we were kind of you know right in the ballpark um so i’m i’m surprised that at that 27 number quite frankly megan megan just have a logistical question and if it’s too detailed for this call that’s fine we can talk about it another time but just looking you know because i have students in the elementary gates i can talk about that in more detail so if we just look at the elementary piece by adding having them start 15 minutes earlier how does that work with the change that was just implemented this week of having them
2:16:13 start at 12 30 to do an asynchronous allied arts project and you know at least in third grade lexia work
2:16:25 well i think we’re talking about the in person and the i guess i’m not sure if i understand your question because the students are following a full remote schedule right now so when we go this would this what we’re talking about now is what we will see on monday right it was my understanding that they are now instead of starting at 1 30 which is what they were starting at previously for that last 45 minutes or whatever with their teacher they are meant to start now at 12 45 and do an asynchronous allied arts assignment and then in third grade anyway it might be different in the other grades um lexia so yeah what megan is saying is happening we’re all getting
2:17:11 homework if you will for the parents to do with the kids every day thank you so much earlier i guess i’m not clear if this is something that is going my understanding is that the logging in it logs in at 145. 12.45 at 12 45. so i’m not sure if what we’re talking about is is full remote specific or and that we did uh when we went full remote i did ask principals to ensure that student students got more exposure to the allied arts because of the extended amount of time they were going to be in
2:17:58 full remote in terms of a day so um that may be what you’re seeing there because something was definitely lost so i guess that piece just needs to be clarified because it wasn’t as a parent i can say that wasn’t clear my my understanding was that as of this monday that is what they’re meant to do they’re meant to log on at 12 45 going forward not just for this week i think it was this week in remote i thought it was and then on monday it’ll go back to the hybrid schedule so i guess that just wasn’t a hundred percent clear at least it wasn’t clear to me well thank you i do agree that it was unclear okay i apologize for it to be for being unclear the um the leaders and i all had a conversation independent was it yourself
2:18:43 this is a thank you so the leaders and i did meet and we talked about having a meeting with teachers help helping them get get their schedules developed and then to send a communication home with that to families so um i apologize if that did not happen in a way that helped you understand that allied arts schedule and um when we go back uh with to the change on monday i will ask principals tomorrow to make sure they send a communication home over the weekend with new with the traditional a custom that’s already been designed hybrid schedule that the students will follow starting monday and i apologize i think we did get too
2:19:29 granular but you i think you happen to just hit four elementary school moms yeah no luckily we all have three yeah there’s there’s got to be other confusion confused parents out there too so i’m glad to be able to clarify that for you starting monday when your students are back in hybrid uh you’re both the students that are in remote and the students that are dismissed at and then asked to log back on on a full in person on an in-person day will log on 15 minutes earlier okay thank you family question so um and this is elementary too just because i live it every day um so the new schedule synchronous integrated
2:20:16 allied arts what does that mean exactly so it’s an it is uh an awkward it’s again a way for us to get our students to have be in front of a live um marblehead teacher okay and it is integrated in that we talked about allied arts being able to really do something fun and engaging with kids for 15 minutes maybe it’s a mindfulness activity maybe it’s about going through and talking about your daily agenda and what do you need to get ready for your day and um maybe it’s about learning um or you know sharing some um musical experience together or doing a friday dance class or you know something to integrate the this the
2:21:01 diversity and the the vast funness of allied arts in a reduced amount of time it doesn’t mean having a structured class where kids are going to sit and have a lesson it’s going to be integrated and designed in a way where kids are really engaged okay so it’s not a typical like music or gym library class no it’ll be something um more integrated in a way that like they may any one of those examples i just gave if you wanted specifics i would reach out to your building principles because i’m sure allied art teachers have been planning yes this whole week of what it’s going to look like and will that be happening on wednesday on the day that they have no
2:21:49 yes sure okay yep okay thank you
2:21:55 great anything else thank you nan thanks man you got it so i will just in a closing note here um our teaching and learning committee met in la the last time we met was middle of october uh i’m sorry december and we have the intention of meeting again in january we will be reviewing this structured learning time going over it with them and also continuing the dialogue about the different models when and if um where we’re able to come back for more in time more in person time that’s cool you’re doing a good job keep it up in nan if i can just ask that as we look at you know the coming months in teaching and learning that we think
2:22:42 about maybe having even a subcommittee of that we’re talking about where i was saying about the fall and what that will mean in planning for that group of remote children because i just want to make sure that we are fully prepared going into that and so i don’t think that we have to take the entire committee down that path because it’s not something that affects the masses but it is something i think we need to work on on that committee i think that’s a great idea sarah i appreciated you bringing that point up all right all right thank you very much nan that brings us to our fy 22 budget calendar update i will john turn it back over to you and i’m assuming the budget subcommittee a bit too
2:23:28 yes the budget subcommittee is uh planning to meet uh next week and review a draft of the budget calendar which will include probably more frequent budget subcommittee meetings that will pull in some of the town people that serve or that participate in that committee i’ll be updating the committee on the meetings that michelle and i uh have been having with principals and directors michelle is getting ready to put out budget worksheets to leaders the end of this week or early next week we’ll be putting together the budget book and our budget priorities so it’s going to be a pretty busy budget subcommittee meeting next week
2:24:14 megan have i missed anything um i think what we hope to have come out of that john is the calendar and also the budget budget priorities also so that’s kind of a first step um you know if you remember what we did last year with with bill starting with those two things and you know we have the nesdek enrollment information so we’ll drill into that in in detail on thursday as well because that will obviously drive some of our numbers that’s a conversation that michelle and i are having with each building principle is the budget virginia budget the enrollment projections based on that nasdaq information as well as uh their anticipated uh staffing needs to meet the enrollment projections okay
2:25:00 now i know last year we met on february 6 and presented we had our budget workshop with the leadership team in the school committee and we went through the budget books so do you have a deep kind of earmarked for that because we’re you know a little less than a month out from that yes um i’m hoping to do a workshop maybe sooner than that depending on when uh leaders are able to get their budget worksheets back i had hoped to do them via some extra school committee meetings but i think you found it helpful last year to do a workshop format it’s a lot if we do all the principals and the directors in one sitting i would i might suggest that we split that into two
2:25:47 workshops because that could be uh upwards of school committee timing yeah so what we did last year is we did all the building principles and i think special education in that workshop and then we split like facilities technology kind of interspersed those in our um in the school committee meeting so just a thought you know as you’re putting that calendar together yep i do have the draft from what you guys developed last year that i’m using and oddly enough i remember the timing um it was my 40th birthday and i was going out with friends so i remember bill promising me i’d make it to dinner and i did so we were able to get through quite a bit in um under an hour and a half we met at six and i was at a 7 30 dinner
2:26:33 so we got through all the building level principles and um whoever megan just said in an hour and a half which i was impressed with yeah john we can definitely have an earlier start that night just for you i would never have remembered that meeting is going so quickly because in my head that was like a three three-hour meeting so yeah i felt that way other than when i walked in i said to bill i haven’t been out to dinner without my children in over a year you cannot ruin this for me i give you my word and i walked out with him and he’s like i told you
2:27:07 all right so we’ll just kind of sit tight and after the budget subcommittee meeting we’ll look for probably like an email or something with all those dates correct fantastic all right so that brings us along to our winter sports discussion and i think the reason that we have quite a bit still in attendance here this evening so um you know without keeping our athletes up any any later we will start that conversation so is there anything that you want me to facilitate i sent the committee a rather hefty uh packet of information that i thought would help inform your decision making certainly greg siglarski as the athletic director has done yeoman’s work in reaching out to
2:27:53 the various leagues across the state and talking to them about what they’re doing in terms of their league and playing teams that are in the red what they’re doing in terms of spectators um i tried to compile that information deanna mcmahon went uh to call it a maven meeting through the mass health department uh and they put that uh low risk moderate risk uh chart together that i copied in color which is not something that i’m often able to do here so i was able to send that to you in color um in their guidelines as well as a very articulate letter from our winter sports captains that they
2:28:39 sent um to greg and to dan or mr ciglarsky and mr bauer as it is professionally titled uh to them that i really i mean it is an impressive letter the depth of research they did and the their articulation of their thoughtful perspective and so i put a cover letter to that um and just indicated that as the superintendent i support us trying to maintain our co-curricular offerings and i don’t limit that to athletics sports are important for sure but so is band so is urinetown so is the gay straight alliance and the student council and the honor society and
2:29:24 and and the clubs and activities and if we can find ways for students to still be engaged in person i think mr bauer reached out to me last week about the jazz band or the orchestra if they could uh be practicing and my answer is with your support yes to that because i see these as critical components they’re not extra curricular activities they are co-curricular activities that are equally as important as the academic piece for our students as i i think i said in my interview this time last year algebra 2 doesn’t bring every child to school there are other things that bring students to school not just algebra two
2:30:10 so i would of course i would appreciate the committee’s continued support for maintaining our winter sports program and i figured you have a hundred questions so i’ll stop talking i see mr siglarski smiling and i’ll open it up or through the chair through questions absolutely uh thanks for joining us greg um you know as john mentioned he did there’s a quite a few documents that pertain to this uh this situation and you know kind of looking for the committee to affirm the district’s desire to to move forward um so i will just kind of open it up for questions
2:30:52 so one of the things that was noted and it was a little unclear to me greg in there was this idea of when do we play
2:31:04 competing schools and we in the fall practiced under the guideline of if a district is red for three consecutive weeks we would not play them and in your letter you indicated that through your research um no one else was doing this what are you asking us for tonight is it under the guideline of no play if someone’s in the red for three weeks or can you just give a little bit more detail about that sure so thank you for having me here tonight uh the metric i sent you guys or i sent to to dr bucky to send to all of you uh indicated that that document that kind of stated the red
2:31:49 towns um and not being able to play um that wasn’t that was dated on august 18th of 2020 so this was pre-fall sports even starting preschool even coming coming together and it has been updated since with that information myself dr bucky andrew petty and mr bauer all met a number of times and came up with the idea that if a town that we are playing competitions against was in the red under the states metrics for three consecutive weeks we would not play against them uh when i brought this to our athletic director’s league meeting uh i was looked at like i had three
2:32:36 heads and no one else was doing this uh upon more research like you mentioned and what i sent over in the packet to dr bucky uh we would be one of the only towns uh in the state that seems to be doing something like that uh a number of leagues that mr bauer and i reached out to uh they call it a league of 12 10 of their schools could be in red uh and they all are still playing each other and if there’s a situation where uh there is a a covet case or a positive contact of some sort um you either cancel the game and or you postpone it or you find someone else who is is not playing and try to schedule them on the day of similar to how we did it in the fall if we were going off that metrics there that you had mentioned uh we would be
2:33:23 able to play gloucester and that’s it everybody else has been consecutive red for three weeks or more and gloucester just came out of the red recently and we’re the only two yellow towns so to clarify that is not a regulation of the miaa at all we that was a homemade regulation correct yes okay um and then as far as the contact goes i know that you know we we received a letter in district that you know there had been a positive case during a tryout or a practice and so therefore the whole team was on quarantine for 14 days which makes sense because how can you not have had a cumulative of 15 minutes in a sport together how will that happen is there a mechanism in place
2:34:12 that for instance if we play winthrop in basketball on tuesday and they have a positive case on that comes back positive on thursday what is where we have different boards about what is the mechanism in which then would our team if they have a positive on their basketball team then would our whole team be quarantined for 14 days yes both teams would be because that would involve in that 48 hour contagious window uh had it been three days or or more than 48 hours uh it would just be winthrop’s team that would have to quarantine not ours but if it’s that window our whole team would quarantine and then as a district we would be responsible for now pivoting to educate a team’s worth of students remotely for
2:34:59 two weeks that’s correct yes okay
2:35:05 that’s statewide as well that’s not just us making that rule up out of thin air that’s that’s what is uh the state’s the state’s rule and i do think it’s important to to kind of hop on that point that that that’s with the letter for myself that’s where the letter and the emails and such that we’ve gotten from from various students as well as various teams that that’s that comes into play there is that these kids and their families are are telling us that they understand these risks and they understand the consequences and for lack of a better word and you know for what it’s worth for them individually they are accepting of that um you know the large picture is a different story which i totally appreciate and
2:35:51 appreciate and appreciate and you know their letter was so well articulated however they’re not just making that decision for themselves if we have greg what’s what’s our largest winter team
2:36:07 like what’s a basketball team basketball limited 15 hockey’s 20. so if we have 20 students pivot in the high school to remote for a week or two weeks that could be our tipping point to having to go full remote to the high school for two weeks so my concern is i admire that those students have made those that decision and that commitment and in that decision as a family but that’s also a decision we’re making for an entire population of high school students potentially wait can you can you clarify that connection sarah where you jumped from so we we have a breaking point at which point we have too many staff and two or
2:36:53 too many students in a remote setting due to quarantine where it’s been talked about once we hit you know if if we have so many students that have transitioned in a period to quarantine r2 i’m sorry remote setting we do have a breaking point of what we can provide without bringing everybody full remote does that make sense david except it was my assumption that at the high school because we aren’t able to run those synchronous classes like we are and and have you know classrooms full of biology and that and that we’ve got those the ingenuity and the other systems helping us with remote that am i under the wrong assumption that at the high school it actually is easier for people to kind of go in and out of those systems because we are not
2:37:40 dedicating multiple marblehead teachers with capacity limits to to their classes okay i just want to make sure that you know that’s a question though that there would be no way that sports would tip us into that is that having an influx of students requiring remote would tip us into a full remote setting at the high school but if i can be assured that that’s i may have misunderstood can i just ask for clarification on that because on john’s slide i don’t see i see the staffing levels but i don’t see the student in quarantine as a driver for moving into a remote setting am i missing something yeah i’m yeah i have the same question so i think and again this is where my question comes in is that at the high school that seems to be less of a tipping point because at the lower
2:38:29 grades if you’ve got one cl one classroom of first graders at the coffin and at the glover and we and so if we had it you know if we had a team at the of soccer players at the first grade and that whole team needed to pull into remote that a team of 20 kids all of a sudden dumping into one first grade classroom or two first grade classrooms would tip the the ability for that classroom to function we would need an additional teacher as a remote teacher pulling a teacher from in person and so that’s that that’s that tipping point those are the dominoes there at the high school it’s my assumption that because of our use of edge annuity and i forget the other than the other one um that that isn’t that the risks aren’t the same there that that it’s much it’s a much more flexible system
2:39:14 yeah and they’re not all in the same grade either i mean the 15 students could be 12th graders 11th graders and a couple of sophomores this may be a mute point i think dan turned a screen on so he can clarify because we’re all kind of guessing at what happens there but he knows you know spot on go ahead dan you’re muted okay now you’re good i got the socks that say i’m muted thank you so at this time you know in terms of students that quarantine we’ve had students quarantine and sometimes it’s self-quarantining parents keeping students out so our model as it is if really we don’t move remote to hybrid models so for students quarantine they stay in the mile they’re in so for example the way our schedule is set up
2:40:00 wednesday is a full remote day for everybody anyway our afternoon classes are remote so really the in-person time they would miss would be one out of the five-day cycle which currently we’re utilizing google classroom for students to make up work and teachers have done an outstanding job of being flexible with that in person time for students to make up that work so it’s a lot different scenario at the high school where they’re not going to move a learning model and we’ve had a number of students quarantined that are not athletes uh before i’m sure we will uh moving on so that helps us we don’t have to allocate move teachers and move people around so i hope that helps great clarification because at the elementary level if you go into quarantine you actually move to a remote teacher for that period so
2:40:46 it could push us into remote at the elementary school so thank you for that clarification no problem we have students that are on other issues too that are out for a medical or what have you we follow the same protocol so
2:40:59 just retired resign anybody else craig can you just um walk us through what the season dates would be in one game start etc yeah sure so our games we were supposed to start as early as tomorrow um but uh our the peabody basketball team wasn’t able to feel the team because of a close contact uh we’re scheduled to start on tuesday next week and that’s going to go sorry that’s going to go through february 21st and then we would start the fall two season on february 22nd okay and then can you um in the document that dr bucky sent there was a whole piece in
2:41:45 there about spectators so can you just kind of explain how spectators will work um for our conference so some conferences went full conference um you know no fans or some conferences when you know one home fan one away fan ours could not come to a mutual decision so it’s kind of um individual schools are going kind of how they want to we’ve made a blanket rule that there’s only supposed to be no away fans at any of our games so no no away spectators like it was in the fall a majority of our schools in our league are doing two home spectators per home athlete like we did in the fall again so that’s what you’re proposing for
2:42:32 marblehead as well yeah i would say that’s what we were thinking yeah and hoping to do it seemed to work pretty well in the fall um and it does seem to do what seem what most of our other peer schools are doing in our league was there consensus in the fall amongst all the schools that you were that we were playing yeah for the most part there were but there’s some facilities that are smaller than ours like our field house is one of the bigger ones in the league and they can handle the amount of people a school like masco has a very small gym so they’re not having any spectators so it’s more based on capacity issues correct yeah or or i believe it sounds like swampscott they just said no spectators period so it does vary okay and a lot of the fall sports were outdoors
2:43:18 outdoors do we fall under the guidelines at all for the maximum um
2:43:31 number of people yeah people at an event at all are schools completely exempt even outside of times for learning even if they were exempt our field house can hold about a thousand and fifty uh we would never even come close to that um no but i mean regardless of the size they’ve maxed out the number of people that can be in a space together like the governor has changed that so we may be exempt i don’t know pools are magical places for whatever reason the field house uh we had this conversation with andrew petty i think we determined that we could have around 400 in the field house in terms of capacity limits which we would never do and so with the two if there are 15 basketball players two
2:44:20 fans we’re really trying to limit uh the crowd size and i just want to jump in as a former swim coach we are not punishing the swimmers by saying no spectators but because it’s not our pool and the same with the ice rink it’s not our ice rink we are beholden to the rules of those facilities and so when you see ice hockey no in swimming no that’s not the that’s not our decision
2:44:51 and just to be just clear on that that the ranks are going to vary with each rank that we’re at it’s not necessarily just a blanket hockey rule um where we’re playing in uh most of our games in in revere at their rink um they have left it up to us of what we want to do so that would uh allow if we’re going to go with the two spectators per home athlete then we could we can do that um if not there’s there’s plenty of opportunities for live streaming of games at both uh our field house facility which we’re going to share out to away fans uh and also home fans that don’t want to come or couldn’t come and also at the rink there’s opportunities for live streaming as well oh that’s great i didn’t realize that was an option that’s good to know thanks greg do you like me go ahead sir where were you renting like a rank
2:45:36 a rank a rank can we set the parameter that no that no visiting people come or is it their their rules if they say they can come how does that work so with the rink that we’re playing at they’ve kind of left it up to us how we want to handle it since it’s our home rink um i know like saugus who plays at a rink in sagas they their rink has said absolutely no fans period no home fans no way fans no media no nothing
2:46:07 and we have the capabilities of bussing all of our teams and then and then to piggyback on that my assumption would be that the same piece with the transportation would have would be okay as it were the fall where we were allowing athletes parents to transport them um individually that same courtesy would be given that’s correct yeah we’re still at half capacity for our buses and um if anybody’s over 20 which would be only our ski team we can get them two buses okay
2:46:42 so has there been any discussion about a provision to this that if there’s a period that the high school is required to go remote that we will pause play during that period
2:46:58 so that hasn’t occurred at the reopening and we do talk sports at the reopening um that that conversation has not occurred um i guess you know particularly given our conversation earlier this evening um i guess we you know assuming we vote to a firm moving forward with this that if we are voting to take our high school remote for a significant amount of time that we would also then take up sports and i guess it would be why are we going remote in my head you know for going remote because there’s too many teachers in quarantine and we’re having trouble staffing the building but could fully staff a remote situation then that’s different than we’ve got in school transmission
2:47:48 i still i still still feel that there is that mixed message of and and i i get what you’re saying there’s different reasons but you know putting kids in person learning in sports on the same field and not just sports i think we need to have a discussion too about what other extracurricular activities are actually going to be available in what format i want to make sure that we’re not just focusing on the sports kids absolutely i i totally agree with that point um i mean i would say let’s cross that bridge when we come to it yeah i agree we’re going to be meeting as a school committee on those decisions anyways we can very easily add the sports conversation to it
2:48:36 and did i understand correctly i mean john mentioned about those other clubs and activities taking place you know where possible right okay well i think we heard dan howell say tonight they’re going to be recording and filming a play right and that will be a pretty significant undertaking yeah it’s an extracurricular activity and that was good to hear so okay so given all of this can i have a motion to support the winter athletic season to proceed forward as planned so moved megan
2:49:22 i would i would just like to once again also recognize the the team captains that took the time to put together a letter it’s it’s um certainly um a learning experience for them to be able to um self-advocate and um come together like that and it was um it was it was good to hear whether whether we agreed with it or not i think i think it’s it’s certainly a good lesson in civics and and um something that they they will look back on so uh a job well done by those captains to to come together and and send reach out absolutely david i so appreciated within that letter that uh that they talked
2:50:08 about their commitment to this too that you know they’re taking the mitigation seriously and you know in my head i read that to be we’re taking it seriously both in school and on the court and real court as well as outside of school um which was refreshing to hear
2:50:29 i i would i would like to see if anybody would entertain linking the in-person learning or remote periods to pausing on the stop um that is a little bit of a sticking point for me i just want to make sure if we’re in person learning then yes if we can’t have kids in the building learning then i think that we it’s a mixed message in my mind still i think i’ve got to agree with sarah gold and that i i think it would for me it would depend on the reasons for going into a remote model um and because we will be discussing it as a school committee that we should discuss it you know when the time comes because i’d hate to make a premature decision based on you know data that we
2:51:14 don’t currently have okay so what i’m understanding is if we go into a remote setting at the high school we will discuss it prior as a school committee and at which time we will revisit sports during that period correct okay i’m good with that
2:51:35 i mean and extracurricular activity sarah as you mentioned i would assume all yeah any extracurricular but i actually have heard which ones are specifically happening besides sports right
2:51:50 hear that sarah would you like dan bauer to weigh in with the club orchestra i don’t need to put dan on the spot but you’re posing a question and i’d like to get you an answer i’m happy to so on my way home i ran into two students going into jazz band rehearsal which is awesome um and a number of our clubs right now are meeting on zoom uh they’re just doing it just works out well for them right now but i’ve had a few approach me can we meet in person um and i’m working with them in terms of following the safety guidelines for example i’ll move back to jazz band and andrew scully with the acapella groups they’re still utilizing the safety guidelines that they have to acapella now because you can’t sing in school but when they were outside they were able to do that um but they follow the same guidelines and the same would be true
2:52:36 with our our national green school society uh the environmental club the one that i usually tweet out although i guess they can’t do any cleaning now with all well there’s no snow on the ground right now but um but they follow the guidelines they’re looking to have a clothing swap at the end of february using the recycling piece and they’re doing awesome so we’re following the safety guidelines with that as well so they’re working with me individually to make sure they can have what they need i’ve spoken with the dance team advisor in terms of looking they typically perform at halftime at basketball games we just can’t do that now but we’re looking for ways that they can do that moving forward so that that’s really encouraging to me and i think that working together for those safety guidelines is really important so um it’s starting to move along dan
2:53:21 dan dan one quick question on that as far as the acapella and choir in general goes do you know is there any updated guidance since the fall on allowing those stuff john i forwarded the committee today a call uh with the commissioner where he alluded to the fact that new uh transportation guidance which gets everybody excited but more importantly uh fine and performing arts guidance will be coming from the department so i don’t know if that means that they will allow singing in school again but they are wanting to update the guidance for schools good
2:53:59 all right we’ve got a motion and it’s seconded i’ll call for a roll call vote sarah gold yes megan taylor yes sarah fox yes emily barron yes david harris yes all right that passes five to zero best of luck athletes thank you everybody i appreciate it appreciate it thank you very much um sarah i have to step away for a minute i’ll be back all right sounds good all right that leads us to our schedule of
2:54:36 in bills pile uh can i get a motion to approve the identified schedule of bills totaling three million five hundred and forty nine thousand five hundred and seventy two dollars and fifty cents so moved so moved david moved second sarah second any questions on any of that
2:55:01 there’s a building project uh schedule in there so that’s some of the heft
2:55:10 all right uh sarah gold yes sarah fox yes emily barron yes and david harris yes all right that passes four to zero since megan has stepped out okay michelle i will turn it over to you because we have an approval of the lease for a new bus yes thank you um so this is more of a formality that i am bringing to you tonight because as john screen i believe he just shared to you um our new bus actually arrived today which was really exciting so we are um anxious to get it registered and insured and on the roads um so we just can’t wait but so this is a formality last year at annual town meeting we were approved for
2:55:56 capital funds for the acquisition of a new bus um we the town decided to um acquire this through a lease purchase agreement so we’re entering into a five-year lease and at the end of the lease it will be hours there’s no buyout on the lease um so i had originally thought the town would be voting this but um the town felt that where it is going to be a school vehicle the school department should vote it so we’re bringing it to you for your formal approval and um hopefully we will get that all set because we do need to pay for it now that it’s sitting in our parking lot um so we’ll be entering into a government purchase lease with tcf national bank to enable the town to pay for this bus over
2:56:41 the five years that i mentioned total cost will be one hundred twenty one thousand nine hundred and eighteen dollars and twelve cents um this is not part of our operating budget it will remain part of the town’s capital vehicle fund um and they will fund it all five years so at this point i’m just requesting approval of the lease purchase agreement with tfc national bank as outlined in the memo um she writes it up for me so i’ll just i’ll use her memo so can i get a motion to enter into a lease purchase agreement with tcf national bank in the total amount of one
2:57:26 hundred and twenty one thousand nine hundred and eighteen dollars and twelve cents and to authorize the chair to sign the contract on behalf of the committee so all right sarah moved second emily second any other questions on that maybe we can get the boosters to put a nice big marblehead m on the side of that bus or or the magician logo on on uh the opposite side but uh yeah that’s definitely exciting it’s it’s well overdue it’s uh good for the athletic teams it’s good for the students that need to be transported around the district and um yeah that that’s great to see him glad to see that lease arrangement and financing
2:58:12 work out so that we can get that bus in the district so michelle have we found someone to hire to drive it yet no we will we actually need three buses so this will be our fourth bus so our fourth bus which really requires a great deal of repairs um will become a spare bus at this point and then once we are able to acquire another bus we will look to trade um the fourth bus in at that time and you know just keep three but we still don’t have enough bus drivers to drive the buses we have we have two regular bus drivers but um
2:58:55 all right got a motion seconded uh sarah gold yes sarah fox yes emily barron yes and david harris yes all right michelle i will come and sign that tomorrow morning thank you um i also did want to mention that just as an extension of this conversation there was a memo in your packet it was actually dropped there either late last night or first and this morning about the request for vehicles for this coming year for the fy 22 budget really not on the agenda but i just wanted to um where we had asked for the bus last year we are hoping to ask for three pickup trucks for this year with the capital request budget for vehicles
2:59:41 the requests are due this week and um last year initially we did submit a request for the bus plus another pickup truck and at that time we were also um promised a hand-me-down pickup truck from the water department so we were hoping to get two pickup trucks plus the bus and um when budget times became tough and we had to make tough decisions we had the option of choosing between the bus and the pickup truck and putting students first we wanted the bus so we um you know agreed to the bus and but that left us without the pickup truck that we desperately needed and the water pickup truck when it finally became available either late summer early fall we had it checked out by the highway department and really it was in
3:00:28 poor condition so we did not accept that truck so the two pickup trucks we were hoping to get for the current year did not materialize so at this point we will be submitting a request for three new um i believe they’re f350 pickup trucks with plows because we are in charge of the snow removal at the school on school grounds um most likely these will also be financed with a lease purchase agreement because that’s where the town seems to be moving and if we are granted them they would replace um a 1999 gmc savannah truck that we have a 2006 ford f-550 dump truck that was handed me down from
3:01:14 the highway and a 2007 f-550 dump truck that was also in a hand-me-down from the highway department um because these vehicles just have so much mileage on them and has so much wear and tear um our repair budget just keeps increasing so i took a peek at our repair budget over the past five years or the past four years plus the current year and we pay a little bit over thirty thousand dollars a year and that has increased slightly over the past couple years um so really by requesting three new pickups we’re hoping to be able to reduce the vehicle repair budget because um for sure don’t need to use any and actually i should say that the increase in that budget hasn’t been as significant as it has in the past
3:02:00 because the highway department is doing all most of our repairs um for no charge for no labor charge so while we have this great relationship with the town and this um wonderful you know working relationship they they are saving us some money but the repairs are not decreasing by any means so i just wanted to give you a heads up um that will be we will be submitting those that request but if you have any questions about that please let me know i was i was happy to see that now that pickup truck was the one that was promised two years ago correct correct two years okay i just wanted to clarify that that yes we were waiting a very very long time and when we finally found it got it and realized it was in such dire condition
3:02:46 we did not want it so i think this really really speaks to this long-term policy of deferred maintenance and deferred renewal of equipment and i’m really happy that we’re stopping that or planning to stop that and i just hope we really try as much as we can to hold strong we’re like we we need if you want us to maintain our properties we need the proper equipment to do it so absolutely we’re gonna try our best and that’s the queen of hand-me-downs saying that like enough is enough oh i think you’re doing a great job so michelle thanks for putting this together i mean i think we all knew our vehicles were maybe on the older side but to see that we’ve got basically
3:03:32 hand-me-downs in a 1999 vehicle trying to do all the work we need to is um i think it’s definitely a sarah said overdue um so thank you for putting this together and bring it to us because now we can help advocate for it as well um and it’d be great to take that 30 thousand dollars and and spend it on you know tangible educational um items that will help our students so thank you absolutely thank you great all right um that moves us forward into our school committee part uh so we’ve got we finally with much anticipation have the school committee goals in the dropbox this time around so as we’ve discussed in previous meetings we were going to do a strategic plan goal
3:04:17 um a budget goal and a facilities goal so um megan i don’t know if you want to kind of read those into the record um or talk but maybe just sort of that that broad overview on of can we um sir can we put them up on the screen just so we can all look at them together is that easy just uh give me a moment yeah um and i’ll just say that thank you after two and a half years we finally got school committee goals i don’t have to nag anyone about it anymore so um you know i just appreciate everyone kind of bearing with me on this um and so they you know doing that workshop i think it was great um sarah fox i know it was your idea to do the team building and i think i said before not normally my thing but i thought it was a really great exercise that that we did and i
3:05:02 think we all learned a little bit about ourselves had some fun and um and then that was a great way to kick start getting these goals done um so what we decided just for the community um in that meeting was to focus on three to five goals so this year we’re going to start with you know our top three priorities from a school committee so this is what as a school committee we are looking um to accomplish kind of a you know this isn’t these aren’t the superintendent’s goals they’re really what is this school committee what are we going to accomplish really for this year um you know i know we’re voting them now they’re things that we’ve been working on since july anyway um and then it’s what you know i guess for me the end date in
3:05:49 my mind would be the end of this school year um and then you know when we do our planning in the summer we could come up with new goals for the you know with a new committee and and the following the falling school year so um so the three areas that we developed goals on were strategic plan as sarah said facilities and and budget um sarah and i took a stab at the strategic plan piece um and working with john you know because we’re probably going at it a little bit differently than we would have you know if everything was was normal um because our strategic plan is technically up this year but with a brand new superintendent and a pandemic um there’s a lot of things going on and so john is working through his entry
3:06:35 plan right now um and so to kind of do this and i think you know sarah gold we can kind of coin want to dorothy’s phrases where you kind of have to like go slow to go fast so what what we really want to do here is make sure that we’ve got the structure in place um before we kind of kick off the actual work of the strategic plan and that’s what this goal is laying out here so we want to make sure that we engage a uh facilitator to help us through this because with a you know a new superintendent school committee members who haven’t been through um putting together the whole strategic plan and making sure that we engage the community throughout um we do think it’d be useful to have a facility facilitator help us through that
3:07:21 through that through that work with the superintendent to create an advisory group that is inclusive of obviously key district personnel but also our our town and community stakeholders and then develop the timeline for what you know how we will kind of go about developing that strategy plan with with an end date um you know i kind of pushed hard to to put an end date there but i think you know john and sarah um made some very valid points about let’s get that facilitator in place because we haven’t been through this yet so let’s not come you know we don’t actually know what that timeline is going to look like so let’s do that prep work first i think that makes good sense um and if we can you know get a little bit further along
3:08:06 by the end of june then we do that but this is what we can actually know that we can commit to and accomplish um by june 30th do you want to keep going sarah do you want to stop at each one uh short note i think you can keep going i actually am gonna probably back us up a little bit then june 30th because we’ll have a new committee by that point so um what i’ll probably just to kind of clarify i’ll probably ask for uh the june 3rd is the first meeting of the of june uh so that’ll put it that’ll put us before the elections okay um facilities it’s probably easier for emily or sarah fox to talk through that one sure
3:08:49 so um that was pretty simple i think we’ve talked about this idea that the deferred maintenance and the deferred renewal of equipment really isn’t working so we want to develop a long-term comprehensive facilities master plan making sure funding is properly allocated to accomplish facilities goals outlined um that’s a big piece of this because we’ve actually have had very comprehensive facilities master plans in place for the last i think 10 years and they were updated five years ago the problem is we never attached um funding sources and the best plans without a funding source it’s you know a wish so that that making sure we have properly funded these line items is very important and then the other piece that we felt was important was to perform a bi-annual assessment to determine if
3:09:37 we’re making adequate adequate progress because in my mind if you don’t um look at your goals and assess where you are then again they’re just wishes all right all right and then megan you want to pick back up on the budget one right so for the budget sorry go ahead david no i i don’t want to i don’t know this might this might be wordsmithing but i sort of see the um
3:10:13 i see the new school as the end of the master plan that started with the high school and i i just want i i don’t know if we need to clarify sarah fox that it and emily it’s it’s really about maintaining our facilities right it’s a facility’s maintenance and i just for others that might read this um you know it’s about maintaining these these properties that we have now i think no at the facilities level we really and we have we have a professional facilities consultant on there and they really did talk about the need for this very intricate plan of a look ahead of what will be replaced in a yearly
3:10:58 monthly weekly basis um and attaching you know because when you look at the one from five years ago and 10 years ago we had a plan you know i think it was 2019 we were supposed to replace all the kitchen equipment at village and then at this year we were supposed to do this and none of it yeah yeah none of it’s happened because we’re not funding it so what you’re talking about i think is more of the very large scale what buildings will we replace i’m looking at you know how do we make our district run within our buildings yeah and i think to to i don’t know who’s point to kind of bring the points together that we’re not looking for the facilities master plan isn’t at this
3:11:44 point isn’t going to include building buildings it’s going to include taking care of what we have you know we have at this point the high school is 20 years old so it has some maintenance pieces and some and some larger things we’ve got a couple of them i think that have some larger things that are starting to come up and that this goal is making sure that those are identified and funded so that we we don’t get ourselves into a position that we were in a couple years ago where we’re taking plaque for um i mean to oversimplify it’s the idea of you do your oil change you change your brakes and your tires every so often and if you don’t you don’t have a functional safe car so it’s the same idea that we have these buildings and we need to take care
3:12:30 of them and fund the plan to take care of them all right i just can i just ask a clarifying question on these though so again i want to make sure that we’re all on the same page so in my mind these goals are for this current school year and then at the end of the school year we would set up you know another set of goals for the 21 22 school year so i guess my question on the facilities one is can we actually accomplish these pieces so can’t you know yes the i know we’re going to do the facilities assessment and hopefully you know we’ll have that um master plan for lack of a better word but can we actually set up the funding for that well
3:13:16 the need for funding like we should we our goal is that we will have this playbook if you will and attached to this playbook will be numbers so that when we budget and we plan we can go and say okay for the next year it will be really easy to say our plan is i mean in theory we should know what our capital outlay is for like the next five years bar and catastrophe we should have a planned idea and not have this what are we going to do what do we need this year we will have a plan of what we’re doing what year to replace things yeah i’m not saying we’re going to fund it all in one year but we will have numbers of but that are budget requirements attached to this master plan okay so
3:14:01 okay so okay so i agree i i just when i read it it reads to me as if we’re gonna basically solve the funding problem by the end of the school year and i don’t think that’s possible no i don’t think that’s what we meant by that no we just as a group we are creating this plan for it’s not going to be implemented like this year obviously because we are literally creating it right now yeah that makes sense so sorry next year we’ll have you know maybe so maybe we just want a wordsmith at a smidge and say um develop a long-term comprehensive facilities master plan uh to ensure instead of making sure well or making sure funding is properly
3:14:47 budgeted because this is a budget this is a facilities master plan book but it’s also a facilities master budget okay okay i just want to make sure that we can actually accomplish the couples that’s all you know like that what we’re saying we’re going to do we’re actually going to do it um because i don’t want you know we don’t want to come to june 30 and be like oh we didn’t do it um but if it’s just wordsmithing then that’s fine and so i guess my same question is around the perform the biannual assessment so well we did we do one in the fall when we start up at our first meeting we talk about what were we supposed to accomplish and what did we or didn’t we accomplish and then we will do one again at the end of the year okay that makes sense okay
3:15:33 um all right another question are you changing any wording on that i just want to note it we can change from properly allocated to properly budgeted okay i guess town meeting decides what we allocate
3:15:53 all right budget budget okay um so for budget for this year we will determine the priorities for fiscal year 22 um through that budget calendar that we talked about earlier with administrative staff we will develop a budget that supports the educational needs of the district collaborate with school administration and town representatives um in order to present our fiscal year 22 budget and have that passed the town meeting in may and provide oversight of the fiscal year 21 budget via regular meetings with administrative staff all right all right one question i have about that is that that
3:16:39 reads to me basically what our um what our legal uh responsibility is like we we have to by law pretty much do all of that do we want to maybe put in there something about how we’re hope our goal is that we can more um start planning for more adequate needs-based funding
3:17:05 uh we can put that in there i guess and i agree with you i know it’s not getting the statement measured at the end it says needs develop a budget that supports the educational needs
3:17:20 okay i mean i just i think that we really we keep talking about you know we can only get through one more year we need to have the override next year i think at some point we have to put pen to paper and make a goal to actually develop this now maybe it won’t be the will of the town or the committee to put that in place but i think we need to at some point really start to do the hard work of outlining what do we want our our district to provide and what does that cost
3:18:08 so do we want to add something in here is that what you’re suggesting i mean i think it’s the elephant in the room for the last two years budget wise yeah and i would say you know we talk about it pretty much every time we meet with you know it’s not necessarily it’s a for me it’s a joint conversation right it’s got to be a superintendent conversation a budget subcommittee a school committee and and town and so i guess i don’t know that i’d be comfortable saying we’re going to definitively definitively go to the town with an override on this date i don’t know that we’re i don’t know that we can commit to that i’m not saying develop an override i think that the first step before we can even say we
3:18:54 need an override is coming up with a vision of which is the strategic plan a vision of what do we want to provide to our students are we providing that now if we are great we’re good keep it the budget what it is if we’re not what does it cost to provide the education we want to provide to our students and i think that exercise i mean we keep talking about override and this and that but we need to do the exercise of what is that where where exactly are the deficiencies i mean we hear that we can’t do um streaming because we don’t have the infrastructure well that right there that’s a bullet point we don’t have an infrastructure that supports live streaming there is a dollar amount
3:19:40 that gets us there i would like to have a budget goal that we start to kind of build this list of what are our what we need and what it costs to get us there something to be effective like um
3:20:03 begin a begin prioritized list of long-term budget goals
3:20:09 district budget goals so let me ask this question is it possible to do that without having a strategic plan that’s the point i was going to make if it’s going to tie to this strategic plan do we have to do that step first and then right because i i agree to sarah fox like there are certain things that we know we have to do whether we have a strategic plan or not right so like infrastructures are great a great example so those are conversations we have you know that we’ll have as we go through the budget process but if we’re talking about kind of a more comprehensive piece that has to tie back to the strategic plan i question if we if it makes sense to do that before we have a strategic plan so i need to it’s just maybe it’s that we start to identify our
3:20:55 our long-term budget goals because like you said we won’t have the full strategic plan but there are some no-brainers like the infrastructure for technology now do i think that we’re going to be able to include that’s going to be a big number do i think it’s going to be included this year in the budget no but do i think between now and june we can identify that and give a ballpark number yes so i think there are some some no-brainers and that we want to start build maybe it’s just that we start building that list now and it and it doesn’t get finalized till we have the strategic plan finalized but i think we really need to start tallying because i mean we have these conversations here when we’re talking about remote learning and then we have this other one here and we really need to start building a trackable list of
3:21:41 where our deficits are and well and i think it ties into the facilities piece too right there’s a long list there right and we don’t have a single item that we need i mean we right we’re lacking okay so i sorry sir just one thing on that is i guess i feel like those conversations you’re right sarah are all happening but maybe we do just need one document that just kind of keeps track of everything in one place yeah a wish list if you will yeah and i and i think going back to megan i’m kind of looking at this like when i do my budget goals at work right you know smart goals you know
3:22:26 and how are they achievable so i i thought at least in this structure we were trying to look at something that was achievable um on a year-to-year basis and we’re now and i agree talking about um more of a strategic vision for facilities and budget and the schools and you know what what will the superintendent and the assistant superintendent and the administrators determine um the educational needs to be what will the facilities team come up with and what will our new technology director um determine the long-term needs are so i don’t i don’t
3:23:14 needs are so i don’t know that if it’s not on this document it’s not going to happen sarah and i well it hasn’t quite frankly dave and not to be blunt but we’ve kicked this can for two years and i get we’re in a pandemic and i get the year i’m gonna finish but i think that it is a fatal flaw that we haven’t started this running list that we are accountable to sarah i am speaking have respect to the person speaking please i thought you were done sorry you paused i totally respect you don’t say that i don’t respect you that’s not appropriate so i’ll stop and you can talk
3:23:58 so i think it’s a good idea to add the this piece of because i you know david you’re right like it and these we do want these to be achievable and we’re halfway through a year i also want them to they also need to in my how i’m understanding these to kind of tee up our goals for next year as well so
3:24:21 i i think the idea of adding work with district administrators to start to identify long-term budget a long-term budget goals wish list but and then that tees us up when facilities comes in when strategic plan comes in then we’ve got this other working piece and they kind of all are going to come together in whatever we decide for next year yeah that as we hit agenda items quite often one of these wow moments comes up like when we when we did the cameras this wow moment of infrastructure comes up and it just seems very disjointed it’s like you know a grocery list if you will to oversimplify when we identify we’re in need of something let’s add it to the budget list and then we we really have a running list of our budget goals to be perfectly honest
3:25:11 so so i would be comfortable adding a piece under here that basically is create whatever uh district wishlist you know prioritize district wish list so we could we could add that here and then i don’t know who owns it because it’s not you know probably john john would own it um but we can i can create a spreadsheet like nobody yeah and maybe it’s on our website so when things come up one of us can even say in a meeting you know i think this is a good thing to add to our list
3:25:57 yeah yeah all right sounds good okay so i’ve got these with the addition uh with the with the wordsmithing under facilities allocated to budgeted and then the addition of work with district administrators to start to identify a long-term budget goals wish list so with those additions can i get a motion to accept the 2020-2021 goals for school committee to be reviewed at the june 3rd 2021 meeting
3:26:28 so moved megan moved did you say 2023 no 2021 okay june 3rd 2021. okay seconded sarah seconded all right uh sarah gold yes megan taylor yes emily baron yes david harris absolutely yes fairfax yeah all right can i add something and you guys can all roll your eyes at me now but this is like now i’m really going like whole hog on the project management um we don’t want to wait until june 3rd to say like hey have we done this right so like this should be a living document in my mind that as we complete something we can kind of like
3:27:15 check it off okay right and so we can just kind of revisit it as you know like as we’re for example as we’re giving our budget updates on a monthly basis we can you know david and i can just kind of be like oh have we you know this is kind of our checklist for our updates i guess sure yeah and you know just remind me and i can put it on as an agenda item too you know a couple of times before then you know i love my my goals and my project yep yep and this obviously you can go on to the website and i’ll have lisa draw it up i think well i just put it down but i think it’s already on our letterhead so it can go onto our website as well so that the public can access it so if i were doing this for my daughter i’d have little check boxes and then she would check it off and cross it off and circle it
3:28:01 circle it circle it well i used to shoot you over the document and you can uh make it pretty i can do much my boxes all right all right well thank you guys for humoring me and getting these goals done i appreciate it and i think absolutely thanks for continuing to push yeah you know anytime
3:28:22 offering to do some of my work i’m happy to send you more thanks lisa thanks lisa yes thank you lisa as always any time okay so we’ve got that bunch of policies that we had looked at uh before the winter break this is our official last viewing of them to vote them so anybody with any questions on any of them just want to clarify there’s a large amount of public that thinks we’re voting on a school name today i’ve gotten a lot of no we’re not voting on that school name today we’re just we will be voting on it and i fully intend to say i want it voted on either next meeting or at level
3:29:07 at level at level the very last is the meeting after that but not tonight um um so in much more boring work um the policies any questions or anything on those
3:29:28 all right then i will ask for a motion to accept the revisions for policy id i g b i h a e i h a i n f f
3:29:50 so moved can i do that yes and leave moved second i feel like we all are asleep at this point yeah it’s sarah seconded um all right sarah gold yes megan taylor yes fairfax yes emily baron yes and david harris yes all right sarah don’t don’t feel bad i mean the cambridge school committee meeting went until 11 30 the other night and it started at six o’clock so we’re still ahead of them
3:30:24 okay so that does bring us to the school naming discussion um obviously we need to name a school um we have kind of sat on this for long enough um so i’m putting it i put it back on the agenda today um and like i just mentioned i would like us to pick a date that we will vote it um i would i would like to toss out than our our next meeting in january which is the 21st um but i’m obviously open if that needs to wiggle a little bit so um thoughts thoughts on the process megan um i would like us to have a meeting where we can get public feedback and then vote on at the next meeting i do not want to get public
3:31:10 feedback and have to vote on the spot i’d like to get the public feedback have time to think about it before i vote that is fair um do you how do you want public feedback through public comment um anything else i mean i think emails i mean obviously we’ve got our school committee email and our you know that’s accessible on our new school committee website um so we’re pretty you know that’s easy not everyone can obviously make it to a meeting um so yeah i think an email to the school committee or public comment either way i’d be happy all right so to clarify a little bit so next meeting we would all be bringing a name and reasoning behind a name to put forward so we’d have basically
3:31:55 five finalists unless somebody didn’t want didn’t have any finalist names to add and then we would solicit feedback in the coming two weeks and then on the february i think it’s third meeting
3:32:13 no february 4th meeting we would vote so didn’t we um back in the day when we put some of the boxes around and we solicited that we received a certain number of votes and there were a top names yes and that list that full list was dropped in the dropbox again today right yeah but that was not i would just want to be clear though those were not i didn’t see that right like those were suggestions so it’s just like this is how many people made the same suggestion yeah um so i would question taking the top five because i think just because you know like someone could have had a great idea and they were the only one who had the great idea so i agree
3:32:58 and not to mention that as the person who counted it i’ll be honest like when you saw the names and stuff if we weren’t clear on the same person couldn’t write in the same recommendation multiple times we had people who literally we had you know nine from one address every person’s name i think the dog put the suggestion into so those numbers were a little skewed and then also i heard afterwards that um there was for some reason misinformation in um at least one if not two of the schools that you couldn’t submit the current school’s names so i think we have to take that with grain of salt yeah that they’re suggestions sorry and i did not mean that the top five i want each of us to pick a name and you know i don’t know whether we want to
3:33:45 keep it to the list that we’ve got of those suggestions or if we want to be able to bring our own names in i think that’s kind of the final piece to decide here this evening i think a lot happened in the world in over a year um i think a lot has come to i mean we’ve had some major moves socially in our in our world we’ve had some major moments we’ve um lost some important people in our town i think that it’s important to remember that that list was really from a world that is much different right nate right now if you will um and i think we hopefully have learned things over the last year and kind of will look at things through a lens of maybe you know what we’ve learned
3:34:31 learned learned as a school committee as a town and as you know just human beings over the last year so are we suggesting that we use that as a starting point but we can add a name is that what you’re saying sir yeah i mean if i want to name it the david harris school i want that option i’d vote for it [Laughter] okay so just a thought on that so if we if we entertain public comment before we offer up the names we won’t get any public comment necessarily on names that we might think but we can hear or the public there’s nothing keeping from making a motion for public comment
3:35:16 at the end of the meeting i think we had a request for one at this meeting yeah that’s true so yeah at the end of our next meeting we could entertain public comment at the end of it as well after we’ve discussed this and get the initial round of public feedback then you then there would be emails and then you know obviously we’ll have time to sit and think and we’re coming into the voting meeting with our with our ideas but we’ll get public comment at the beginning of the meeting on the fourth as well and if there’s one we’ve learned this year there’s no shortage of people sharing their um opinions on what we’re doing via email text phone call bumping into us on our lawn so is uh will you hate me if i suggest we present our names at the next meeting
3:36:02 with our reasons like i’m assuming we have to come with reasons why we’re suggesting that name yes take public comment the following meeting and vote the meeting after that i want to get that i know you don’t want to i know you want him i know you want to meet me i want a name but just so everyone’s got the chance and we’ve got time to like you know think about it but also logistically megan we need to start ordering um and spacing they need to when we’re planning um we’re planning the mural right now we need to you know if it’s the fox school i mean that’s three letters if it’s the thaddeus kadzinski’s thing like that’s a lot more room on the side of the building so i think just logistically we do need to get this stuff ordered
3:36:47 because we don’t want to open a school without a name i don’t i don’t want to be the reason we open a school without a name i definitely do not want to be the chair of the committee that had a school without a name so david are we pushing timelines like would that hold us up um no i mean to the committee they want to know like sarah said just for placement and it’s part of the planning for i have definitely gotten a few niches from people other than david yeah so why can’t we say our names and then have people comment at that meeting and then they can email us right and then we have a full two weeks um to receive you know encouragement
3:37:33 or not or whatever yeah and then then they can republic comment before our meeting if they want to if they feel that strongly and then [Music] at the end of the day we have to own this and it’s not there is no name we’re going to say that is not this is this is john thinks um the calendar is controversial in this town like this is the hot button issue we are not this is not going to be benign well we have really teed up january 21st to be a hotbed of nonsense that’s presented i think i’m going to be ruining someone’s family legacy no matter what way we go
3:38:17 all right so we’re all going to show up 21st with a name and reasoning behind me we all get one choice one choice narrow it down all right all right onward and upward any liaison i call going last by the way fine i’ll go first um any some prettier liaison updates since last time all right all right pushing us forward building project update david i think i need because you got kicked out i think i need to let you share here again one more time yeah
3:39:02 yeah yeah all right oh okay all right there you go should be able to now make this happen
3:39:20 so share screen there you go everybody see that yep uh hot off the press the these photos were taken today so uh thanks to brian johnson uh from left field so this is the end of the building you’re looking at would be where um pre-k uh you can’t quite see where the where the playground or the entrance would be so i guess uh sarah help me out so this is the east side of the school and as you’d be driving in and looking at the school and then the pre-k end and you can see here the work is progressing down towards the entryway where you would enter into the school
3:40:07 and where the administrative offices are and as you’ll see in all of these pictures the brick is about 95 done as of today and this area that’s even in tarp is is the brick has been laid but um due to the the weather they’re keeping it covered for the for the brick to cure and then it’ll be washed so you can kind of see um a little perspective there of how that’s looking and then these these silver panels that you’ll see in each of the next couple of photos that’s where that um sarah correct me what do they call it
3:40:51 composite panels that’s the brand name i believe that’s the um yeah but essentially they’re composite to make they’re essentially plastic but um they’re made to look like wood and the color we chose i actually don’t know what we finalized on david after we switched to red brick i think it we originally it was like a driftwood almost a weathered color but i don’t know what we went to i agree i think it’s somewhere in that in that range too of of color and i’ll try and get an update for everybody on that so you can see that and then if i uh scroll down let’s see come on
3:41:38 yeah there we go go back so here’s the sunny side of the school at two o’clock in the afternoon this time of year teachers might want to start putting in their requests because this is where the sun will shine along the west the west side of the school and again you can see um you know the detail to the brick and the and the windows and the framing and how i think the contrast of the frame to the windows and everything is just really looking spectacular that these are the doorways that were um planned and voted on you know we wanted to make sure there were there were doors on the first floor to to the outside
3:42:24 outside outside and then you can also see that there will be green space between the roadway and the school so you know you’re starting to see how that’s all coming together um [Music] we’re at about 60 of the windows are in but essentially the windows go in pretty quickly once the once the brick layers get out of the way um the windows go in pretty quickly so um sixty percent of the windows are in and um those should be completed in the in the next couple weeks as well just to know what the other item that’s going to go on the back of that building is there will be um these the black metal um i believe they’re black they may have been changed to gray though um
3:43:11 like sun shades where it’s not a but it’s a structure that comes off above all the windows there and it will add another dimension so it will break up kind of what is reading a little bit like um like a fact like a factory length of a building it will break that up and then once the landscaping goes in each of those doors will have like a little anybody familiar with the bell um program the bell organic garden each of those rooms will have a small little garden plot out them so sarah you know you know carol splaine we used to have that phenomenal garden right outside our children’s classroom every day they’ll still have that because you have to remember that first floor is the kindergarten in first grade learn the youngest learners so they’ll still have that hands-on
3:43:58 experiential learning available to them right outside their doors which is great
3:44:08 the next picture is so this is going around the the back as you would kind of drive up the playing field and um the the joke on site they’re calling this the great wall of china now this this um retaining wall but um it’s actually very aesthetically they’ve made it look i’m trying to zoom in on it blend in to be look much like natural granite and the way that they’ve you know turned the stones and not just laid and offset stones they put some of the um the brick on end and so it’s it’s really looking nice and then this is the back the back of the school where you’ll
3:44:55 the door where you’ll actually walk in through the media center so once all of this work finished work is done and all the back fill comes in you know there will be backfill right up to this level right where that construction worker is standing and you’ll actually be able to enter the school at ground level so that’s what that’s showing where david’s mouse is will be that at the top of that hit um retaining wall will be the organic garden and then just beyond that will be the um playground with the resilient surface and and these lower entries this is this is where some of the um deliveries will be received and then you
3:45:41 start getting into the mechanical rooms and and the kitchen so just on this this lower area that doesn’t have the the same windows as the school and last but not least since we’re late uh i wanted to try and i had this isn’t a really good depiction but i’ll talk a little bit about the mosaic um this is the where the white is this is the gymnasium and cafetorium um almost directly positioned in the middle that’s where the mosaic that’s being designed will go you know half at least the plan is half on the outside and then um half on the inside we’ll get a better picture on that but the last one i wanted to show one of my favorites
3:46:27 so this is looking you’re in the cafeteria so picture that you’re down in the cafeteria and you’re having lunch and um to the right of the athletic fields and to the left would be the administrative offices but this these um nautical windows as i like to call them that um i think is going to be a really cool design they’ve already started to do the sheet rocking and you can see how those are coming together and um what that will look like when it’s a finished product and that i think that’s a really neat feature and that’s the media center on the other side of those pictures um and then the ceiling in that room will kind of there’s a treatment that kind of
3:47:12 makes it look like waves that will be in different tones of like a blue and a green emily and i have both gotten a chance to see that in the interiors um group and it’s it’s really going to be an interesting space yeah so with that and we do have a meeting uh next thursday so why don’t i mean you and emily can tell us we have a one item agenda for next thursday and we’re going to be talking about interior design right that’s a lot of time um we’ve been i feel like almost weekly right emily yeah for the last month or so right now yeah i actually just got an email from him tonight he likes emailing me on thursday night i don’t know um so we’ll be having
3:47:58 another one shortly yeah and so that’s next a week from thursday where the committee will just get you know based on all the work that you’ve been doing and uh the feedback that he’s received and the and the changes and we’ll get all of that as a purview to the committee on on next thursday so that’s sort of an additional meeting with just that one agenda item in mind for everybody to be able to see what the interiors are going to be looking like and that’s that thanks guys um can i just say something uh this is amazing like i feel like it was not too long ago that we were just there doing you know laying that last piece of steel and see how far it’s come in such a short period of time the brick
3:48:45 is all up the windows are in like it’s so exciting every time that you give an update david because you can i mean you just see such a difference every time we talk about it and i would say the only downfall from my perspective is that my kids are gonna just miss it like it just looks like such an amazing school i think the building committee has just done like a fabulous job so far so well done well we realized in our interiors meeting i think out of a very large committee i’m the i think only one that will have children at all but multiple children that will go through that school maybe i’ll just hold josie back like one year
3:49:25 well well done guys really yeah thank you i have a grandson that could go there [Music] you’re the only person i know that hopefully will like wish them to that point in their life i mean the school will still be young at that point so all right um any new business unfortunately yes i know it’s so late i want to go to bed um but i i wanted to bring up the idea of you know years ago before everything went off the rails as it did in our district we had finally gotten to a point where we held three times a year these open forums where there was an evening of dialogue
3:50:10 with not just the superintendent but with the school committee and they were well attended i don’t know if any of you got a chance to go to them but i i was lucky enough to go to all of them they were well attended they were respectful it it um it was very well received in the community and i think there is anybody that got a chance to see any of these um coffees that you will um jason’s been hosting i think there’s a a need and a want for them in the community so i would like to talk about you know starting to set those up whether it’s twice a year three times or four times a year in a true forum format um and then also i want to talk about you know we’ve i’ve gotten a lot of
3:50:56 feedback lately we’ve been watching we’ve all i think tune in constantly to the board of health we i’ve always you know stalked the selectmen meetings but we really are the only board in town that won’t engage with the public um there is a way to do it and still i mean we had a great meeting this morning where yes sometimes you get tough questions but people stayed respectful and you know john did a phenomenal job of you know working through that and jason did a great job and i think that this idea that we don’t interact with the public i mean we have our business to do they can’t jump in while we’re having the bulk of our meeting but um i can’t tell you the number of selectmen’s meetings i’ve gone where the chairman has wonderfully said
3:51:41 said said she has a dialogue with her committee during open comment if they ask a question she answers it they answer a concern and then i’ve always seen her at the end say does anybody have anything else they want to say and i don’t think that’s something we should be scared of i think that there there’s a way to manage it and if people get unruly they get unruly and you stop them and you shut it down i mean with zoom now it’s really easy to shut someone down um but i i would like to see us move towards more of a community engagement model fully realizing we have business to do when it’s a meeting and there will be a portion of our meeting that is our meeting so so i mean it would that would require a
3:52:26 policy change because that is an masc recommended um policy so it’s not like we just create that out of thin air and are like nope that’s what we’re doing um so i mean i i would i would say sarah that i would recommend maybe doing a little bit of research into that and talking to dorothy a bit uh yeah bringing that back um i think my understanding in the research i’ve done is it’s a mixed bag a pretty even mixed bag of communities that have the engagement in the communities that don’t but as our policy reads it is to the discretion at the chair so you could as jackie does give her committee at any time position or permission to um answer a question or you know
3:53:12 like for instance when the chip seal debacle happened i there was a heated hot crowd and i watched them they worked through that entire meeting as a committee with and with their um constituents and it really was an example of how it can work um i would like to be able to answer and give feedback i mean we’ve had we’ve had students come and speak um at the beginning of the year in tears and we all just sat here called stone faced and and i i actually and that’s not a moment i’m proud of i want us to be able to you know interact during or not i don’t want to say interact but when
3:53:58 appropriate answer a question a concern or acknowledge a comment so okay sorry something so um i think this is a worthwhile conversation to have i don’t think it’s the right time at new business at 10 30 at night to have the conversation so i think julie noted rey’s let’s talk about it in in earnest um you know let’s get it on an agenda and talk about it um yeah that’s i just come with ideas because to be honest like you know when i ran i was like let’s do office hours and i kind of still think office hours would be great so there’s we’ve got to find a balance between how do we effectively um and interactively work with the community in a way that is effective and efficient so the one thing i would say about
3:54:43 about about um the public comment is it is now 10 30. we’ve been at this meeting for three and a half hours plus an executive session before that so to add in you know when we had 165 people on this committee to add in that back and forth like i think we’ve got to get our meetings a little bit more efficient before we can do that because to be honest like we’re going on 11 o’clock it’s just not effective right now but that’s not to say we shouldn’t be engaging with the community we absolutely should we just need to find a way and agree on a way that is like i said effective and efficient so conversation i think we should have i think we should get it on agenda and we can all yeah so okay so i will let’s look i’m i i would normally say we’ll go down the next agenda except we have the
3:55:28 calendar and the news and the school name on the next agenda so i i do want to get like i don’t i don’t want this same thing to happen i want to give this that’s due so let’s um as john and i look at the next agenda either the next one in the 21st or um on the fourth uh we can we can work to put that on and and have conversation and do a little background on on how this is managed in in other districts yeah and i think it would be useful you know sarah if you want to take it on um you know to talk to dorothy about you know best best practices from her experience you know she was on a school committee for 20 plus years and now is you know an masc rep and also you know maybe she can kind of point us to districts that do it well um because i’m sure there’s districts that have tried different things but she’ll you know
3:56:13 from her experience she’ll probably have some ideas of districts that do this really well that we could then reach out to so i don’t know if it’s possible to do some of that legwork and then maybe will john’s coming up with his plan for the calendar to give to us maybe if he can just you know think about these were separate than typical school committee meetings two or three dates that we could put on a calendar to have an open forum and i think if i recall they had themes like one was guided on special education one was so it wasn’t just a free-for-all there there was a general suggestion of this is what you know i think our talking points will be on tonight that makes that makes a lot of sense all right that moves us on to
3:57:00 correspondence we actually had a couple pieces of correspondence uh this for this evening sorry um john do you want to take it on the five prince street land
3:57:22 sure um i received an email from someone interested in a piece of property uh for purchase um that is owned by the school department so i reached out to jason and jason uh said that it should uh come before the school committee and so we put it on the agenda for the scene
3:57:43 so i think basically this is this one of these pieces where it’s this small little sliver of land over by vets we would have to turn it back over to the town and then the town would work with work with it um i think that and we have that mou or moa whatever it is with the town on you know kind of coordinating pieces i think that that this might be kind of like as we move forward and i know we’ve talked about the the land use piece as well um then it’s time to kind of touch base with the town side with the border selectmen you know megan and i are the representatives for that this year and so kind of calling calling that
3:58:30 sort of hammering out exactly where things are at with the with the land piece and then sort of taking some next steps on that because again kind of like the budget wish list like we’ve had multiple conversations now about these pieces and so if we’re going to form a committee to look at land use let’s form a committee to look at land use but that committee needs to have the town side on it as well um so that’s going to kind of be that’s my recommendation that’s what i think we should do yeah with this as soon as i read it too i wondered if we wanted to possibly it’s a tiny strip of land if we had even thought about does this person would they consider renting an easement which would maintain control of the land
3:59:18 for us but also bring us in revenue i happen to know a guy that knows about that stuff particularly a marblehead you know sir it’d be useful this kind of you know is an example but there are other little parcels of land throughout town like we should just have a list of what they all are because you know we’ve talked about them a few times but that’s not even a comprehensive piece um it’d be great if we could get you know i agree work with the town and put that together and then kind of figure out how we move forward with with them and prioritize so i’ll reach out to jackie and try to get those that ball rolling on on this land piece because you know obviously if we’re going to do this it needs to be turned over at uh town meetings so
4:00:04 that’s all that process is is going to start coming well and do we want to have a placeholder for a warrant article ready to be voted on at our next meeting because it will be the last meeting before the warrant closes yes then definitely and we also have to god more new business we’ll need any other placeholders ready for the next meeting um i think lisa’s got that on she’s got a list that she keeps um for what needs to go on what agenda i think that’s on there because she and i were talking about it last time yeah okay it’s on uh you know on our radar for the budget subcommittee too we need to do it but this piece we might want to just yeah right just put a placeholder absolutely because yeah like i said this is that we’ve had multiple conversations regarding these things
4:00:51 um and then we’ve got a memorandum of understanding with the recreation and parks department um john correct me if i’m wrong but this and this is also in your dropbox this is work that’s been going on um without an mou or and and so this mou is just lining it all out and and putting it out there so that it’s um it’s written and respected yes this is memorializing what is um i think what sarah fox would call um an interesting or a uniqueness of marblehead the fact that park and rec maintains um our grounds for us except for our fields um
4:01:37 uh bill had talked to me about this about how unique there’s the word i’m looking for um the setup is uh in town and there was never any sort of a formal recognition that this is what you do this is what we do this is kind of the and it’s not the right use of the word but the quid pro quo of the relationship and so i met with park and rec and they had beautifully outlined this and we talked about certain points and then they put it into this correspondence that is coming before school committee tonight it’s nothing different than what has been happening informally for years but they wanted to formalize it
4:02:23 so actually john i don’t mind talking to you offline about this just to save time but i i after reading that would like some more things added to it there’s a lot that hasn’t been being done informally like i know i’ll give you the example you know they talk about the flower beds and where the bushes are i think about this with the new school you know parents have been coming in volunteering on the weekends or you know a big fall cleanup i think you know at belle sarah i think you were there with and we literally rake and then i kid you not i call a contact i have a parking rack and arrange a day that they’ll maybe try to come pick up the leaf bags and it we we need to stop running some pieces of this like a volunteer organization so i i would like to
4:03:09 you know make sure that there’s a little bit more clear in there to make sure that we’re making not just you know mowing the grass but if we’re planting hundreds of thousands of dollars of landscape we’re maintaining the bushes we are weeding remote like all that and who and who exactly is doing it and who is picking up the waste from it i know it seems nitpicky but this has been a reoccurring problem for years oh and i’m coming from a district that had a uh grounds crew that did that but there would be local organizations that would say oh we’d like to plant flowers here or do this herb garden and then that group would go away but that’s those flowers or flower beds would still be there and then the question was who is
4:03:54 maintaining those so i think those are important very important distinctions um todd in my weekly meeting with him uh was talking about um and this goes to budget this might go to long-range planning us having dedicated facilities or not facilities people but grounds crews so that when certain things need upkeep it can be handled internally rather than having to wait for another town department uh to attend to it add it to the wish list john yeah amen seems little but having been like the person that wound up making the phone call because i did it once as a
4:04:39 volunteer and then did it for the next four years like this needs to take place on a regular basis okay so we need to vote this but it sounds like not tonight all right so we’ll pump that with sarah fox on some of the details great all right all right so there was a request for um a second public comment do i have a motion for that well moved second all right uh roll call vote sarah gold yeah before before we vote though not to be like totally jerky about it but can we put a time limit on it yes i would like a one minute time limit on it because it is 10 41 um and i i you know it’s
4:05:26 people can continue to talk but i’m not attending as well as i was at seven whatever when first public comment was given so um sarah gold yes megan taylor yes david harris
4:05:45 don’t say it i wasn’t muted yes sarah fox yes and emily baron yes all right if anyone wants to give a public comment uh please use the raise hand function
4:06:05 all right i’m not seeing anybody okay i’m back go ahead hi i’ll keep this really short um i just want to say thank you to sarah fox for suggesting the public forum this has been raised many many times recently and um it would be lovely to get something more formal and um regarding the new school it is incredible to me that you have built a school and it i still have to change um a handle on one of my doors you have built that school faster than i’ve managed to get that door handle changed and um i just think that’s amazing thanks kelly thanks cassie all right i see no other hands raised so i am going to take this opportunity to adjourn us at 10 42.
4:06:50 thank you everyone officially our longest meeting ever i think good night and don’t say that to john no like really our longest