DRESDEN SCHOOL BOARD
REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2005
7:06 P.M., HANOVER HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY
APPROVED
Present: Board members Bruce, Carter, Chamberlin, Cheney, Fleischer, Gray, Kaplan, Pilchman, Vitt; Council Representative Creighton; Administrators Gersen, Aubin, Brush, Gillespie, Finer; and 46 members of the public. Recorded by R. Lohr
1. Call to order
Chair Cheney called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m. Ninth grade social studies students were welcomed to the meeting. She explained the sequence of meetings indicating the initial budget hearing would be followed by a bond hearing and the Dresden School Board regular meeting.
2. Budget Hearing in accordance with RSA 32:5 - Athletic Fields Plan Discussion
Chair Cheney opened the public hearing on the budget for the Article on the November 7/8 Special Dresden School District Special meeting in accordance with NH RSA 32:5. The warrant for the meeting was discussed and Superintendent Gersen gave a presentation about the plan for the Dresden athletic fields. The information reviewed the plan for facilities on Lebanon Street at Hanover High School and Route 5 in Norwich; sharing of fields with the towns; the long term district needs fulfillment; and the synthetic field replacement timetable and cost.
The budget for the fields project was $3,210,000, which included a contingency of 7 percent for $209,881. The staff recommended deducting $250,000 from the Merriman funds, $281,880 for Vermont construction aid, and $100,000 of private donations from the budgeted amount to reduce the amount to be borrowed to $2,578,120. Dr. Gersen projected taxpayer implications based on that borrowing and presented a comparison of the previous bonds that were proposed for the athletic fields.
If the bond is passed, the work on the lower field would begin as soon as possible so that it would be ready for play next fall. The track/soccer field work would start after the renovation staging area is cleared. Details of the entire Athletic Fields Committee deliberations can be found on the SAU Web site.
John Aubin explained how the bond would be allocated to Hanover and Norwich so that state aid is equitably applied toward the respective taxpayers. He also noted that $56,000 was saved from the original price quoted last week by choosing a middle range synthetic turf. An additional $100,000 +/- was saved by pricing the lighting project with local contractors.
The Committee discussed the efforts to solicit donations and some contributors’ desire to earmark their donations to specific elements that were not included in the scope of the project such as scoreboards, shelters and dugouts. The Board agreed that the first $100,000 of contributions would be used to reduce the amount necessary to borrow and any additional contributions could be used for enhancements to the overall project.
3. Bond Hearing in accordance with RSA 33:8-a
At 7:40 p.m. Chair Cheney opened the bond hearing in accordance with RSA 33:8-a in preparation for the Dresden School District bond vote to take place on November 7, deliberative session, and November 8, all day voting. A question was posed by the public regarding the time that the Lebanon Street field lights would be turned off. Chair Cheney stated that this issue will be taken up with the Hanover Planning Board indicating at present the proposed time for turning off the lights was 9:00 p.m. The Board expressed its appreciation to Athletic Fields Committee chairs Peter Krass and Kathy Parsonnett and the other committee members for the arduous work they accomplished on the project.
A motion was made by John Chamberlin and seconded by Linda Gray to approve the athletic fields project budget in the amount of $3,210,000. The motion passed unanimously.
A motion was made by Linda Gray and seconded by John Chamberlin to approve the November 7/8, 2005 Special School District Warrant as proposed by the Administration and amended, and as attached to the original meeting minutes, and to further authorize the Administration to make whatever technical changes that might be necessary in order to ensure that the Warrant is legal and accurately addresses the intent of the School Board. The motion passed unanimously.
4. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Linda Gray to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of August 30 and the special meeting of September 19, as submitted with one change. The motion passed with 7 in favor and one abstention (Bruce). The change was the spelling of Merriman.
5. Communications and Reports
a) Chair Report
Chair Cheney announced that the next regular School Board meeting is scheduled for October 25, tentatively at the RMS library. The Special School District Meeting will take place on Monday, November 7, discussion phase at 7:00 p.m. in Tracy Hall in Norwich, and Tuesday, November 8, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. for all day voting. Voting will take place at Tracy Hall for Norwich voters and the Richard Black Community Center in Hanover for Hanover voters. The Board also agreed to hold the annual retreat on Tuesday, October 18.
b) Council Representative Report
Alex Creighton of the Student Council announced several Council decisions. He reported that the Council appointed a committee to serve as a liaison to the renovation project. He also noted that an effort is underway to obtain a picnic table for the front of the school, announced that Council provided $200 to fund the Math Team club, and noted that the Council was taking steps to coordinate 9th grade orientation to Council. He also noted that there were many discussions about behavior at the dances, the Co-Op, and the vending machines.
c) Superintendent Report
Superintendent Gersen discussed a memo outlining a proposed plan of attack for reviewing the policies required by recent changes in the NH Minimum Standards. The policies were batched into three groups: required, recommended and optional. The Board suggested that the staff and the policy committee review the policies and then submit them to the Board for final consideration.
d) Assistant Superintendent Report
John Aubin discussed the year end financial report in the Board packet that showed $107,851 over budget in revenue and $195,353 (1.1%) under budget on appropriations. The auditors have completed their work and their report is expected soon.
f) Facilities Director Report
Jonathan Brush, in response to an earlier discussion, reported that the modular classroom buildings adjacent to the high school will be necessary through 2007 and indicated that teachers and students will need to go outside to access them. Once the high school renovation is complete, it is possible that one of the modular classrooms could be sold and the income could help pay for renovating and moving the other building to use as an athletic facility or as an auxiliary space elsewhere in the District.
In his update on the Middle School project, Jonathan Brush noted that the digital control system for heating/cooling and the fire alarm panel are under review. The Richmond Middle School remaining work checklist should be completed by the end of September. The wood chip heating system at the middle school will be tested on the week of October 10. The use of the system should result in effectively paying 53 cents per gallon for fuel oil - a significant savings.
At the high school, Jonathan Brush reported that soil issues in back of the cafeteria were worse than expected, but the soil issues anticipated at the site of the new gym were not as bad as expected. The net effect would probably be a wash
g) Principals Reports
Principal Gillespie announced that the High School Open House and renovation presentation went very well and were well attended. She presented an overview of the high school’s teacher evaluation system describing it as one that provides an opportunity for teachers to be challenged to grow. She noted that student feedback is collected annually and shared with department heads and that teachers’ input is used to assess the performance of department heads and administrators. Deb Gillespie also reported that students raised $2,000 for victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Principal Finer of Richmond Middle School reported that the separation from the high school has been very positive for the middle schoolers. She expressed concern that the road plan to prohibit left turns from the RMS parking lot causes problems with the Dartmouth Printing employees, who do not have such a prohibition. She reported that all of the families of students except two can now be contacted via email. Susan Finer announced that the Middle School Open House was scheduled for October 6 at 7:00 p.m. and she planned to include a presentation by the Superintendent regarding the athletic fields bond at 6:15 p.m. on the same evening. She also distributed a written description of the RMS evaluation system to the Board. Susan Finer also announced that $1,100 was raised for victims of Hurricane Katrina.
h) Committee Reports
The Alternative Funding Committee met with Stan Colla, who formerly worked with Dartmouth Alumni relations. At the meeting, Mr. Colla outlined details associated with conducting an alumni fundraising effort. He suggested that such funding be identified as supplemental rather than replacement of local taxes, and encouraged the Board to look at this as a long range effort. He noted that traditional events such as reunions could help the school connect with recent graduates as could emails. He also suggested surveying the existing senior class for feedback. The committee designated the administrative staff to follow up on the initial meeting and to get reactions from students on the concept.
Dresden Finance Committee – John Chamberlin reported that the Dresden Finance Committee recommended revisions to the Budget Guidelines presented to the Board in August. He noted that the revisions would be discussed as part of the Board’s action on the Guidelines.
6. Business Requiring Action
The Board discussed the budget guidelines that included changes that had been submitted by the District Finance Committee. The changes attempted to incorporate targeted limits to school district spending. After extensive discussion, the Board decided to retain its original language with the understanding that increases to the 2006-07 budget should be controlled in relation to the cost of goods and services associated with education. The Board also understood the need for it to be mindful of the per pupil cost trends that could result in the excess spending penalty imposed on Vermont taxpayers by the state of Vermont.
A motion was made by John Chamberlin and seconded by Larry Pilchman to approve the 2006-07 Budget Guidelines as proposed and attached to the original minutes of the August 30 Board meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
A motion was made by John Chamberlin and seconded by Linda Gray to authorize the Superintendent to contract with one or more vendors to design and build the athletic field project pending the bond approval at the Special District Meeting of November 7/8, 2005. The motion passed unanimously.
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Larry Pilchman to accept the coaches as submitted and attached to the original meeting minutes. The motion passed unanimously.
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by John Chamberlin to accept the $10,000 gift from the Byrne Foundation as proposed and attached to the original meeting minutes. The motion passed unanimously.
7. Nonpublic Session
The Board voted to enter nonpublic session with a roll call at 10:14 p.m.
A motion was made by John Chamberlin and seconded by Chip Fleischer to enter nonpublic session in accordance with RSA 91-A:2 (l.b.) for discussion of negotiations. The motion passed unanimously by roll call vote.
8. Adjournment
The Board re-entered public session at 11:45 p.m.
Nancy Carter moved and John Chamberlin seconded a motion to adjourn at 11:46 p.m. The motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 11:46 p.m.
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