HANOVER SCHOOL BOARD
ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8, 2006
7:00 P.M., RAY SCHOOL MULTI-ROOM
Minutes
Present: Board members Asmus, Bruce, Carpenter, Carter, Chamberlin, Fleischer; Administrator: Gersen; Recorded by R. Lohr
1. Call to Order – Superintendent Gersen called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. Election of School Board Officers
Superintendent Gersen opened the floor for board chair nominations for the 2006-2007 Hanover School Board term.
Robert Bruce nominated Chip Fleischer for board chair and Kari Asmus seconded the nomination.
Robin Carpenter nominated Kari Asmus for board chair and Chip Fleischer seconded the nomination.
Chip Fleischer nominated John Chamberlin for board chairman and Nancy Carter seconded the nomination.
Robin Carpenter moved to close nominations for board chair and John Chamberlin seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
The Board discussed the nominations in terms of the chair’s role to develop Board consensus, interact with the community, and lead the Board through the issues facing it in the coming year.
The Board reviewed how the voting on the nominations would work and how it would reach consensus on selecting the new chair. The vote was held and Chip Fleischer received the majority (Asmus, Bruce, Carter, and Fleischer) of the votes to become the Board chair. Kari Asmus and John Chamberlin each received one vote.
Robin Carpenter moved to express the Board’s appreciation for John Chamberlin’s service and accomplishments as the previous Board Chair and Kari Asmus seconded the motion. The motion passed with five in favor and one abstention (Chamberlin).
Chair Fleischer opened nominations for vice chair for the 2006-2007 Hanover School Board term.
Nancy Carter nominated Kari Asmus for Board Vice Chair and Robert Bruce seconded the nomination. The motion passed unanimously and the Board voted to elect Kari Asmus as the 2006-2007Hanover School Board Vice Chair.
John Chamberlin nominated Robin Carpenter for Board Secretary and Robert Bruce seconded the nomination. The motion passed and the Board voted to elect Robin Carpenter as the 2006-2007Hanover School Board Secretary with five in favor and one abstention (Carpenter).
3. Business Requiring Discussion
Board Committees
The Board discussed the standing board committees and Board member interest in serving on them. The final committee member rosters would be decided at the next meeting. It was suggested that each committee and liaison/representative would develop two or three specific tasks as goals. These goals would be identified as specific accomplishments that the committees would strive to attain and the status of these tasks would be reported to the Board regularly.
The Board agreed that the Educational/Long Range Planning Committee would incorporate the Board’s liaison to the Ray Technology Committee. Principal Williams is very supportive and active on the Long Range Planning Committee. Board members Nancy Carter and Robert Bruce expressed interest in serving on this committee.
Board members felt the Budget Committee needed to enhance schedule coordination and increase participation with the Hanover Finance Committee. The Board expressed its interest in linking long range and mid-term planning and budget components with programming. There is also a desire to do some long range budget planning between March and September while still attending the Ray School faculty retreat and the budget review meeting with the Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent. Kari Asmus and Robin Carpenter expressed interest in serving on this committee.
The Communications Committee was seen as a pivotal vehicle for the Board. Board members felt it is important to develop more dialogue with the community. The Annual Report was enhanced this year, but further improvements remain a high priority. The Board discussed using the Web in a more proactive and timely manner and considered a Board blog to help increase communication between the Board, its committees, and the various groups associated with the school district. At present there is a member of the public serving on this committee and the Board considered that seats for other representatives would be useful on this and some of the other committees. John Chamberlin and Robin Carpenter expressed interest in serving on this committee, with Kari Asmus expressing a willingness to help the committee in its transition.
Liaisons/Representatives
The Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) meets monthly in an effort to improve the school in various ways. Dr. Gersen suggested that the Hanover Board might want to include a report by the PTO chair on the monthly Board agenda. Additionally, the Board is interested in finding a way to encourage more parent involvement in Board activity. John Chamberlin expressed his interest in working as the Board Liaison to the PTO.
The NHSBA Delegate edits the monthly emails from this association and forwards a shortened and pertinent synopsis of this information to the Board. It is also coordinated with the Dresden Board. Kari Asmus has been the delegate and was willing to continue serving in this capacity.
The Hanover Finance Committee includes a member appointed by the Hanover School Board and a member appointed by the Hanover Select Board. The other five committee members are selected by the school and town moderators. The Board would like to enhance schedule coordination and increase participation with the Hanover Finance Committee. Chair Fleischer will discuss the School Board representative with the Dresden Board Chair. Kari Asmus has been the representative on the Finance Committee.
The Technology Committee has a member from the Hanover School Board on it. The Board suggested that this committee become part of the Board’s Educational/Long Range Planning Committee and take on the challenge of considering more ways for technology to be more integrated in a variety of areas. John Chamberlin has expressed interest in this position.
4. Adjournment
Kari Asmus moved and John Chamberlin seconded a motion to adjourn at 9:17 p.m. The motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 9:17 p.m.
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