DOC082124

COLCHESTER BOARD OF EDUCATION
Board of Education Regular Meeting

 

 

 

 

Tuesday, August 20, 2024
5:15 PM
William J. Johnston Middle School

MINUTES

BOARD MEMBERS.PRESENT : Chair Alexander Oliphant, Vice-Chair Christopher Rivers,

Secretary Margo Gignac, Donna Antonacci, Michelle Millington, Rosemary Gignac and Stefanie
Tracey-Calash.

ADMINISTRATION PRESENT : Superintendent Daniel P. Sullivan, II] and Assistant
Superintendent Jessica L. Kuckel.

OTHERS PRESENT : Instructional Technology Coordinator Barbara Johnson, Executive
Assistant to the Superintendent Alyssa Fratoni, Director of Educational Operations Andrew
Barillari and Human Resources Coordinator Pauline Goetz.

1. MEETING OPENING
1.1. Call to Order
Chair Oliphant called the meeting to order at 5:16 PM.

1.2 Roll Call
Chair Oliphant conducted a roll call of the Board.

1.3 Pledge of Allegiance

2. *ADDITIONS / CHANGES TO THE AGENDA
2.1. Motion by: D. Antonacci
Motion to add Policy 2111 Equal Employment Opportunity to Policy Second
Reads, Agenda item 8.15.
Second: C. Rivers
Roll Call: All in favor
Vote: Motion carried

3. PUBLIC COMMENT
3.1. For Public Comments, please see Bylaw on Meeting Conduct
No public comment at this time.

 


4. *CONSENT AGENDA
4.1 *Approva! of Board of Education Special Meeting Minutes of June 27, 2024
Motion by: D. Antonacci
Motion to approve minutes of June 27, 2024
Second: M. Gignac
Roll Call: 6 in favor, C. Rivers abstained.
Vote: Motion carried

5. REPORT FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT
5.1 Update on Summer Projects
Director of Educational Operations Andrew Barillari spoke about all of the improvements
and updates done to each of the schools, such as paint and repair crews fixing walls, doorways,
railings and classrooms, new flooring was installed/refinished, the new ceramics classroom was
built at BA, screen and smartboard installations, the creation of the daycare space at CES and
new fencing, mulching outdoor areas, tree work and roof repairs.

5.2 Update on childcare for employees

Superintendent Sullivan spoke about the new Daycare going into CES that will offer
on-site before and after school childcare for Colchester Public Schools employees at a reduced
rate and will follow the Colchester Public Schools calendar. Once the list was finalized of the
employees interested, the offer went out to Colchester residents to fill the remaining slots. Little
People’s Play Place Too will open on Monday, August 26, 2024 and they will have an
Infant-Toddler room and a Pre-K room. All of their applications and licenses have been
approved by the State. Little People’s Play Place Too will also re-implement the Half Day
Hurray, where there will be childcare before late arrival days and after early release days, based
on availability. They are looking into hiring paraeducators and high school students to round out
their staffing numbers for those days. M. Millington shared her thanks as a working parent and is
happy to see the support from the District.

5.3. Update on Bacon Academy Flooring

Superintendent Sullivan stated that we were fortunate to receive $200,000 in funding
from the State legislature to launch phase 1 of the flooring overhaul at BA. So far, it has made a
significant dent on updating the main level of BA and contractors and staff are working hard to
get classrooms finished for the first day of school. Vice Chair Rivers stated that he is happy that
the work is getting done. He asked what the fife expectancy of the flooring materials were.
Educational Operations Director Barillari answered that the carpet installed in the high traffic
areas have 20-30 year life expectancies if maintained properly.

5.4 Update on HVAC Grant

Superintendent Sullivan stated that the original estimate for the HVAC work at BA came
from Trane in December 2023. Between issues with the current HVAC system and the changes
in pricing and availability of materials, the project has not been started. The Superintendent
stated that an RFP has been posted and there is a deadline of the first week of September to
have submissions for proposals and qualifications of different companies. He also stated that it
is important to air condition as much of BA as possible. Vice Chair Rivers stated that we are
seeing the blessings and curses of state programs and supply and demand products.
Superintendent Sullivan stated that once the RFP deadline is here, decisions will be brought to
the Building Committee in regards to the Companies and the work needed.

 


5.5 National Security Conference

Superintendent Sullivan spoke about how he received an invitation to speak at the
National School Security Conference in July in New York City. He was a panelist for one session
and ran a presentation that focused on his experiences on school safety. He stated that it was a
great experience and a good opportunity to network with others in the field.

5.6 Reminder about changes in Kindergarten Legislation

Superintendent Sullivan stated that because of the new state legislation, this is the first
year that students born in October-December have to wait to enter kindergarten. He stated that
CPS followed the waiver process and assessment outlined by legislation. A small percentage of
students were ready to start Kindergarten early based off of the assessment for academic and
social readiness. Now that we are living in it, hopefully students and families will see the
benefits.

6. *PRIORITY DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS
6.1. CSDE Special Education On-Site Visit
Motion by: D. Antonacci
Motion to table until the September Meeting for more information.
Second: R. Gignac
Roll Call: All in favor
Vote: Motion carried

7. ICIES - FIRST READ
7.1. 2400.1 Evaluation of Certified Staff
D. Antonacci explained the changes.

7.2 4115 Evaluation - Certified
D. Antonacci explained the changes.

7.3 4215 Evaluation / Supervision
D. Antonacci explained the changes.

8. POLICIES - SECOND READ
8.1-8.15

2000 Concept and Roles in Administration, 2100 Administrative Staff Function,
2112 Professional Development, 2120 Organizational Chart and Attachment 2120F, 2121 Lines
of Responsibility, 2133 Principal, 2133.1 Assistant Principals, 2141 Recruitment and
Appointment of Superintendent, 2210 Administrative Leeway in Absence of Board Policy, 2220
Representative and Deliberative Groups, 2232 Standard Announcements (Dismissal of
Classes/Teachers), 2250 Monitoring of Product and Process Goals, 2300 Code of Ethics,
2300.1 Code of Professional Responsibility for School Administrators and 2111 Equal
Employment Opportunity.

Motion by: M. Gignac

Motion to approve all second read policies.

Second: S. Tracey-Calash

Roll Cail: All in favor

Vote: Motion carried

9. REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES

 


9.1. Budget Finance Committee
C. Rivers stated that he would like to wait until the September meeting when
Director of Finance and Operations Rachel Linkkila is present to go more in depth about year

end results.

9.2 Curriculum Committee
D. Antonacci stated that the next meeting is in mid-September.

10. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS AND INFORMATION ITEMS

10.1. Next Meetings
The next scheduled Board of Education meeting is Tuesday, September 10, 2024

10.2 Personnel Report
Human Resources Coordinator Pauline Goetz presented the resignations,

retirements and new hires comparing Summer 2023 and Summer 2024. The District as a whole
is tracking downwards and is far less this Summer vs. last Summer in terms of resignations. S.
Tracey-Calash asked if there are any other retention efforts being made by the District other
than the implementation of the Daycare. Superintendent Sullivan answered stating the efforts to
bring the salaries more towards the median for long term teaching contracts. He also stated that
Colchester Public Schools has been fully staffed in terms of Certified Staff since July 6, 2024.

11. PUBLIC COMMENT
11.1. For Public Comments, please see Bylaw on Meeting Conduct
No public comment at this time.

12. ADJOURNMENT
Motion by: C.Rivers
Motion to adjourn.
Second: M.Gignac
Roll Call: All in favor
Vote: Motion carried

Chair Oliphant adjourned the meeting at 6:04 PM.
Respectfully submitted,

Alyssa Fratoni
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent