Superintendent's Report @ Board of Education Meetings

I report to the Board of Education, and the community, at each regular meeting of the Board.  Below, you will find the script I write prior to presenting this report.  I do, however, elaborate on some points and respond to questions from members of the Board of Education creating a larger report than may appear here.  For a full viewing of the report and the ensuing dialogue you are encouraged to view the Board of Education meetings on cable channel 24.

If you have questions, or would like further information, please contact my office through Ms. Gail Gillengerten (517-333-7424), or e-mail at Gillengerten_gm@elps.k12.mi.us

  Superintendent's Report

May 20, 2013

A.  Upcoming Events of Interest, Dates for Your Calendar:

• May 22nd – ELHS Convocation, ELHS Auditorium, 7:00 PM
  
• June 2nd – ELHS Graduation, Wharton Center, 1:00 PM
• June 10th – Regular meeting of the Board of Education – adoption of 2013-14 budget
• July 9th – Only regular meeting of the Board of Education in July
• August 15th & 16th – Ad Council Retreat, Lunch with BOE on Friday, August 16th
• Date for Board of Education Retreat in August or September?
  

B.  Items of Information

• Acknowledge Mr. Atkinson’s presence and add the recommendation to the consent agenda.

• Congratulations to the Edgewood Scholars and to those that have supported them.

• 6th, 7th and 8th grade teachers, parent representatives, administrators, Trustee Krause representing the BOE and architects met in the MS library on Thursday (5/16). Lots of interaction took place, good ideas surfaced and the architects left with excellent input from the practitioners. We are moving closer to blueprints. We are on schedule for an August, 2014 opening. Bids will be received by the BOE in August. Construction is scheduled to begin in September.

• We have several tasks in front of us as we prepare for the 2014-15 school year and beyond. Decisions need to be made re: neighborhood alignments, placement of students in K-5 schools, placement of faculty in K-6 classrooms, orientation for students and parents, programming for 5th and 6th grade students among many other things. In my comments on March 25th I suggested a, “committee with appropriate crossrepresentation to {make} recommendations to the Board of Education.” If you deem this appropriate, I would like to ask one or two BOE members to assist in the
  development of the committee.

• Several asked for a copy of the “9 Reasons I am Bullish on the East Lansing Public Schools” comments I made at the ELEF dinner on May 9th. Please see attached.

• The document prepared by the District Parent Council and presented at the May 6th meeting of the BOE was shared with the Ad Council group on Thursday (5/16). Good conversation followed.

• Please note information in the “Items of Information” section of your Board packet to include proposed Board policy related to 1) Reduction and Recall of Teachers, 2) Teacher Discipline and 3) Teacher Placement. These policies were received from our legal counsel and are required per changes to Section 1248 of the school code. The ELEA had an opportunity to provide input, but very modest changes occurred after receiving their input, per guidance from our legal counsel. The Policy Committee reviewed these policies. I anticipate bringing them forward with a recommendation for approval as action items on June 10th.
  
  In addition, please note the memo from Ms. Chapman regarding the personal phone call she received from Dr. Eleanor White, Director of Special Education with the Michigan Department of Education, specific to our district’s good standing on the most recent disproportionate report with respect to race and ethnicity and the 1) identification of children with disabilities, 2) identification of children with disabilities in a particular impairment category, 3) placement of children in particular educational settings, and 4) incidence, duration and type of disciplinary actions, including suspensions and expulsions.
  
  Please note the estimate regarding the expenses associated with the central office move to the high school. I appreciate the efforts of Gail, Rick, Michele, Rich and all to keep these costs to a minimum.
  
  Finally, from the “Items of Information” section, please note correspondence from Judge Larkin and MASB Executive Director, Kathy Hayes.

• I would like to acknowledge the work of Mr. Pugh in preparing the amended budget and the Finance Committee for providing support and feedback throughout the school year. The condition of the budget may be taken for granted, given fairly unremarkable comments tonight. It should not be taken for granted. Thank you to Mr. Pugh and the administrative team for your work prior to tonight’s meeting and year round impacting tonight’s budget presentation.

• And, a shout out to two of our Board of Education members: Ms. Nell Kuhnmuench for the very complimentary cover story “The Best Lobbyist in Lansing” from the May 2013 Greater Lansing Woman Magazine, and to Mr. Nate Lake for his role as an Elder in the Turning Point of Lansing Program and their exceptional end-of-the-year program “Transforming Boys to Men” recently featured in the Lansing State Journal.