March 7, 2017

LogoSequim School District No. 323

“Inspire and Achieve“

503 North Sequim Avenue, Sequim, WA 98382

Telephone: (360) 582-3260, FAX: (360) 683-6303, www.sequim.k12.wa.us


TUESDAY, March 7, 2017 ~ 6:00pm Regular Board Meeting – Meeting Changed from Monday, March 6 due to scheduling conflicts

A Curriculum Table was set up outside the board room to facilitate previewing the Grades 6-12 Springboard and Engage/Expeditionary English/Language Arts Curriculums, currently being field tested in our Middle School and High School

CALL MEETING TO ORDER/ PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE (REF. POLICY 1400/1420)

Vice-President Horan called the Regular Meeting to order at 6:00pm with all Board Directors and Student Board Representatives present, with the exception of President Robin Henrikson, who was excused. Visiting Boy Scouts led the Pledge of Allegiance.

PRESENT

Bev Horan, Vice-President    Jack Walsh, Citizen

Heather Short, Director    Monica Dixon, KAH

James Stoffer, Director    John McAndie, Maintenance

Michael Howe, Director    Tom Kelly

Ann Renker, Assistant Superintendent    Doug DeIvernois

Paul Wieneke, Human Resources Director     Larry Jeffryes

Maria Seabolt, District Office

Gary Neal, Superintendent    Mark Knudson, Sequim High School

Marilyn Walsh, Secretary     Deb Beckett, Teaching & Learning

Joan Ritchie, Citizen

Patsene Dashiell, District Office

Michael Dashiell, Sequim Gazette

Ron Tognazzini, SMS & SHS Science Mentor

Rich Seiler, District Office

BOARD REORGANIZATION (REF POLICY 1210)

Vice-President Horan called for nominations for Vice-President. Director Stoffer nominated Heather Short for Vice-President. Director Howe seconded. Vice-President Horan called for any other nominations for Vice-President. Hearing none, Vice-President Horan called once again for nominations for Vice-President. Hearing none, a roll call vote as conducted. Director Howe voted ‘aye’, Director Stoffer voted ‘aye’, Director Short voted ‘aye’, Director Horan voted ‘aye’. Director Short thanked Director Horan for her service to the Board and moved to the chair of the Vice-President.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Director Stoffer moved to approve the minutes from the February 21, 2017 Regular Board Meeting and Board Planning Workshop as presented. Director Horan seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

CHANGES/ADDITIONS AND APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA (REF. POLICY 1420)

Director Horan moved to approve the agenda as presented. Director Stoffer seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

STUDENT BOARD REPRESENTATIVE COMMUNICATION & STUDENT RECOGNITION

  • Student Board Representative Téa Gauthun reported that at Helen Haller Elementary the summer reading book backpack program funding is going well with donations from Helen Haller Elementary PTO, Thrivent Financial, 1st Security Bank, Microsoft and Soroptimist. Under the program, six self-selected books and a reading log will go home with each of our 625 students. Teacher-Librarian Sheri Kruckeberg has done an amazing job coordinating the logistics of kids selecting books and partnering with outside agencies. Haller PTO will host a Family Bingo Night later this month. High School students filled Haller’s campus on March 2 for Read Across America/Dr. Seuss’ Birthday. Our students enjoyed reading with and to their high school friends. On Wednesday, March 8th, Greywolf Elementary will release their teaching staff for one hour each to meet with their Reading Coach to discuss needs for upcoming grade-level professional development. Kindergarten Transition meetings are being held with our kindergarten teachers and local pre-schools.
  • Student Board Representative Kaylee Gumm reported that Sequim Middle School celebrated their inaugural growth and achievement night last week, when over 100 students and families enjoyed a meal, and were part of the celebration of learning. A special thanks goes out to the Sequim Education Foundation for their support of this event. Additionally, Sequim Middle School had two honor roll nights where over 400 students and families attended. It is scheduling week for Sequim High School, so kids will be signing up for classes next year. The High School ASB is busy planning for Junior Prom on Saturday, March 18th from 8-11pm. There is a band concert on March 30th at the high school, and spring sports games start next week.

PUBLIC COMMENTS - The Board believes that public comments are a very important connection between our community and the Board. This time is set aside for receiving both written and oral communication.

Vice-President Short asked for any comments regarding agenda items.

a. Ms. Joan Ritchie passed out articles to the board and urged them not to delete any of the Personnel Policies on the agenda under Old Business.

Vice-President Short asked for any comments regarding general items.

a. Mr. Brian Kuh, Deputy Director of the Economic Development Council, expressed his support of the district expanding student offerings in career and technical education and offered to help leverage these programs to help kids gain skills and experience.

BOARD COMMUNICATION AND OTHER ITEMS

a. Director Stoffer thanked Director Bev Horan for her twelve years of dedication, caring, and compassionate service to Sequim Schools. He noted that she always put kids first in all of her Board Work, and made a difference in the lives and the education of countless children. It is now Day 60 of the 2017 Legislative Session. Bills will need to clear their house origin by this Wednesday afternoon at 5pm. As of yesterday the conversation of extending the Levy extension is still in play. Two bills that warrant close attention this week are HB 1046 -- Delinking ELA, Math, Science HS assessments as graduation requirements for the Class of 2017 to meet standard on the End of Course Biology exam as a prerequisite for graduation. Districts are encourage to share information with policy makers regarding the number of students impacted should the decoupling of the EOC as a graduation requirement not occur sooner than later. The other Bill is SHB 1235 – Physical Education Assessments & Reporting. This one is of concern due to the new & extra reporting requirements – unfunded mandate! EHB 1551- Equipment assistance Grant Program to enhance student nutrition in public schools is another one to keep on the Radar. If it passes; Grant Programs are expected to be available for 2018; referred to as the Apple Bill. The Washington State School Director’s Association has the four Funding Proposals posted on their Website with comparison. Director Stoffer will also have these posted in OneNote along with the WSSDA Week 8 Webinar presentation. WSSDA is expected to submitted comments to Bureau of Natural Resources regarding recommendations to the Draft Environmental Impact Statements for the Sustainable Harvest Calculation & the Marble Murrelet Studies; due to BNR by the 9th at 5pm. The comments were drafted by the Chair of the Timber Lands Trust Fund; Mr. Russ Pfeiffer-Holt; recommending Option B, which provides an additional estimation of 10% of revenue to the Trust Lands Beneficiaries. Director Stoffer commended Superintendent Neal on a job well done on the introductions for Representative Kilmer at his Town hall meeting on March 6.

d. The Board accepted the Letter of Resignation from Beverly Horan, School Board Director-at-Large, effective March 20, 2017 as presented.

e. The announcement of the board vacancy will be posted on our website, in the Peninsula Daily News and by word of mouth. Applications will be accepted through the close of business on Wednesday, March 15. Up to five interested candidates will be interviewed at the March 20 Regular Board meeting. An Executive Session will follow the Regular Meeting where the board will review the qualifications of each candidate. The Board will return to Open Session to nominate and appoint a Director, to be seated at the April 17 Regular Board meeting. (REF. POLICY/PROCEDURE 1114). Director Howe objected to the timeline as being too short. The three other board members preferred to proceed as discussed.

CONSENT AGENDA – REQUEST BOARD APPROVAL: Any item may be moved to New Business with a motion from any Board member.

a. General Fund Vouchers No. 18775 thru No. 18775 in the total amount of $125.00; and No. 187756 thru No. 187839 in the total amount of $134,346.03.

b. ASB Fund Vouchers No. 10775 thru No.10775 in the total amount of $3,278.00; and No. 10776 thru No. 10789 in the total amount of $9,454.52.

c. Payroll for the month of February, 2017 in the amount of $2,166,743.94

d. Personnel - Employment with the District will be conditional upon the district’s receipt of a criminal conviction history record that is clear of any convictions, adjudications, protective orders, final decisions, or criminal charges in accordance with Washington State law and conditional upon receipt of a sexual Misconduct Disclosure Form from prior Washington State employer(s), where employment was in a school setting, indicating that no sexual, verbal or physical misconduct materials were found in the records of such employer(s) pursuant to RCW 28A.400 and WAC 180-87-080.

1) Accept Leave of Absence Request from Nicolena Hutchins, Olympic Peninsula Academy Elementary teacher, from March 10, 2017 through the end of the 2016-2017 school year, as presented.

2) Approve Request to Reduce Contract/Work hours from Victor Lancheros, Sequim High School paraeducator, effective March1, 2017 as presented.

e. Approve Memorandum of Understanding between Olympic Educational Service District 114 and Sequim School District for Foss Kit Training for the 0216-2017 school year, as presented.

Director Horan moved to approve the Consent Agenda, items ‘a’ thru ‘e’ as presented. Vote taken; motion carried.

OLD BUSINESS

a. Director Horan moved to approve at First Reading the Recommendation to DELETE Policy #5211 – Transfers. Director Stoffer seconded. Discussion followed. WSSDA recommends that the policy be deleted because most transfers and reassignments for represented personnel are regulated by collective bargaining agreements and this policy can create confusion if it runs counter to such provisions. Non-represented personnel work in such varied and assorted positions that a comprehensive policy is difficult to apply to all situations. Vote taken; Directors Stoffer, Short and Horan voted ‘aye’, Director Howe voted ‘nay’; motion carried.

b. Director Stoffer moved to approve at First Reading the Recommendation to DELETE Policy #5215 – Assignment and Transfer of Certificated Administrative Staff. Director Horan seconded. WSSDA recommends that the policy be deleted because it is an unnecessary reiteration of the procedure and process for transfer of certificated administrative staff pursuant to RCW 28A.405.230. Vote taken; motion carried.

c. Director Horan moved to approve at First Reading the Recommendation to DELETE Policy #5230 – Job Descriptions/Responsibilities. Director Stoffer seconded. WSSDA recommends that the policy be deleted due to the fact that Human Resources departments regularly modify job descriptions, so listing them in policy is inappropriate. Vote taken; motion carried.

NEW BUSINESS

a. Director Howe moved to approve the Sequim High School Knowledge Bowl team to travel overnight to Arlington, Washington on March 17-18, 2017 for the purpose of competing in the State Knowledge Bowl Tournament, as presented. Director Stoffer seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

b. John McAndie, Director of Facilities and Maintenance, introduced changes to Policy #6801 – Capital Assets/Theft Sensitive Assets. OSPI raised concerns that districts’ policies did not require that these assets be specifically identified. WSSDA worked with OSPI to develop revisions to Policy and Procedure #6801 to address these audit issues. Classified Essential.

c. Director Stoffer moved to approve the District Calendar for the 2017-2018 school year, as presented. Director Horan seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.

REPORTS

a. Mr. Wally Endicott, Executive Director for Kids at Hope Northwest, gave an overview of the Kids at Hope program and philosophy that “every child is afforded the belief, guidance and encouragement that creates a sense of hope and optimism, supported by a course of action needed to experience success at life’s four major destinations: Home & Family; Education & Career; Community & Service; and Hobbies & Recreation. “ Sequim High School and Sequim Middle School have both implemented Kids at Hope program as part of the district’s emphasis on developing students’ social emotional skills in order to enhance student achievement.

b. Ms. Deb Beckett, District Science Coordinator, gave an overview of the district-wide science goals; alignment of science goals with the language arts texts and how they complement the Next Generation Science Standards; and the implementation of Project Lead the Way in the High School for Fall 2017. Discussion followed.

c. Mr. Mark Knudson, Sequim High School Computer Science Teacher, gave an overview of the current District Technology Plan. The evolving district strategic plan will inform the next steps of the district technology plan moving forward. Discussion followed.

d. Superintendent Gary Neal reported that all certificated staff attended in-service workshops on Monday, March 6. A series of seven half-day workshops have been scheduled for the purpose of long-term district strategic planning. The first of these sessions has been planned for Thursday, March 30 from 8:45 to 11:45 at the Clallam Transit Center. The state auditor is still working on the annual audit. Board members will be informed of the results of the audit when it is concluded. So far, it looks like the district will need to raise meal prices for next school year.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

Vice-President Short drew Board Members’ attention to:

a. PDC Filing for Board members is open online. Due April 15th

b. Upcoming Board Meetings, etc.

o March 20 – 6:00pm Regular Board meeting – Reception for Retiring Director Beverly Horan, from 5:30pm to 6pm

o March 30 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o April 3 – No Board Meeting – Spring Break!

o April 13 -- Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o April 17 – 6:00pm Regular Board meeting

o April 24 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o May 11 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o Week of May 14 – School Board Candidate Filing Week

o Saturday, May 20 – WSSDA Regional Meeting in Bremerton

o May 25 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o June 8 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

o June 22 – Strategic Planning Meeting from 8:15am to 11:45am at Sequim Transit Center

c. Classified Employees Appreciation Week March 13-17, 2017

d. March Free & Reduced Lunch percentages

e. Other items of interest:

o March 12 – Daylight Savings time begins

o March 22-25 – Sequim High School Band to Heritage Festival in Anaheim

o March 29 – Sequim High School Choir Concert @ 7pm in the auditorium

o March 30 – Sequim High School Band Concert @ 7pm in the auditorium

o April 3-7 – Spring Break! District Office OPEN

FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER

a. Meeting Exit Slips were distributed

ADJOURNMENT

At 7:15pm Director Horan moved to adjourn the Regular Meeting. Director Stoffer seconded. Vote taken; motion carried.