SCHOOL ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT #70 BOARD
REGULAR MEETING AND SPECIAL PRESENTATION
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2007
8:00 P.M., HANOVER HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY
Minutes
Present: Board members Asmus, Bruce, Callaghan, Carpenter, Carter, Chamberlin, Fleischer, Rose, Sachsse, and Vitt; Administrators Gersen, Aubin, and 5 members of the public. Recorded by R. Lohr
1. Call to order – Board Chair John Chamberlin called the meeting to order at 8:07 PM.
2. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Robert Bruce to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of June 4, and the special meeting of June 25, as submitted with changes. The motion was passed unanimously. The change on the last motion in item 3 was to include the names of those opposed (Asmus, Carpenter).
Superintendent Gersen stated that after researching the policy regarding abstentions that they are not valid for board member absence from meetings. The majority of the Board agreed to abide by the interpretation of the policy, pending a possible review of that policy.
3. Reports and Communications
A. Chair Report
Chair John Chamberlin announced that the next SAU Board meeting will be held on Monday, December 17, 7:00 PM in the Hanover High School Library. This meeting will be the Public Hearing on the budget and the Budget Adoption.
B. Superintendent Report
The Superintendent updated the Board about the forthcoming Faculty Survey, which will be administered on November 28. Results from the survey are expected prior to the December school vacation.
C. Committee Report
Marjorie Rose reported that the Quality of Education subcommittees are making progress but a final report would be issued to the Board in May 2008 rather than in December.
4. Business Requiring Discussion
Technology News
Bob Franzoni of CATV announced that CATV will soon use a live RSS feed of the school board meetings on the CATV.org web site or on ITunes podcasts. He suggested that a hot link be installed from the SAU Web site to the CATV Web site page that has the various school and town meetings. The service is expected to be on line by late December. Additionally, CATV will deliver DVD copies of the board meetings to the Howe Library and the Norwich Public Library every month. These copies will replace the meeting video tapes and they will be made available within a week following the actual meetings.
Bill Mlacek, who has helped the school boards to upgrade web site information, presented some ideas to the board about using the Internet. Recommendations included:
a. Functional email accounts for all staff across the district;
b. A consolidated calendar for the entire district that is similar to the high school calendar;
c. Subscription-based newsletters;
d. On line agenda, packets and minutes from all boards and committees;
e. Use free Google docs for people to access budget information rather than PDF format;
f. Create separate email addresses for board members;
g. Create an Advisory Technology Committee that uses knowledgeable community members to develop long term recommendations;
h. Redesign Web site to improve consistency and accessibility;
i. Consider the development of a blog or forum, for public discussion of school issues.
The Board expressed its appreciation for Bill Mlacek’s support on moving forward on these matters and his help on the web sites. It was stated that the school will be using new software to track room rental and associated activity and that the system may be able to be used to develop a calendar for the district, too.
2008-09 Budget
Assistant Superintendent for Business, John Aubin reviewed the SAU budget document, which showed a 4.2 percent increase and a projected $10,016 fund deficit. The budget increase ($45,336) can be traced to salaries paid and associated taxes/benefits, telephone/postage expenses, and advertising/recruitment expenses. He also reviewed the assessments to the respective districts.
5. Nonpublic Session
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Mary Sachsse to enter nonpublic session in accordance with RSA 91-A:3 (ll.a.) for discussion of compensation of employees. The motion was passed unanimously. The roll call was conducted and the Board entered nonpublic session at 9:30 PM.
The Board reopened public session of the regular board meeting at 9:56 PM.
6. Business Requiring Discussion
Budget Discussion Continued
The Board directed the administration to apply the same 2.75 percent increase to the SAU budget that is being applied to the other district budgets. This would require $15,987 in budget cuts resulting in a budget of $1,096,581. Some suggestions included decreasing or eliminating the substitute/overtime account; seeing if telephone costs could be decreased due to sharing with the high school, and considering alternative ways to substantially lower the health insurance premiums that might include higher deductible amounts and direct employee payments to cover those deductible amounts. The Board acknowledged the work accomplished on the budget and requested that administrators bring the list of implications on SAU office functions that might result from a 2.75 percent guideline.
7. Business Requiring Action
A motion was made by Chip Fleischer and seconded by Kari Asmus to approve a tentative SAU budget in the amount of $1,096,581 to be posted for and presented at the SAU Board meeting and public hearing on December 17. The motion was passed unanimously.
Superintendent Gersen reviewed candidate Marion Bates’ background and how it will be advantageous to the school district and nominated Marion Bates as Technology Supervisor.
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Cary Callaghan to appoint Marion Bates as Technology Supervisor for the remainder of the 2007-2008 school year at a salary of $36,000. The motion was passed unanimously.
The Board discussed the issue of whether a Board member should review and sign the district manifests similar to the practice in other districts in Vermont and New Hampshire. It was felt that this work is within the administration’s responsibilities.
A motion was made by Kari Asmus and seconded by Nancy Carter to authorize the superintendent or assistant superintendents of SAU #70 to sign manifests on behalf of Norwich, Dresden, Hanover, and SAU Districts. The motion was passed unanimously.
8. Adjournment
A motion was made by Nancy Carter and seconded by Cary Callaghan to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed unanimously. The SAU # 70 Board meeting was adjourned at 10:16 PM.
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