Robein Grade School
Board of Education Meeting
February 26, 2002
The
meeting was called to order by Mrs. Short at 6:00 p.m.
Members
present: Mr. Buttice, Mr. Dearing, Mr.
Knight, Mr. Van Beuning,
Mrs. Short, Mr. Visocky, Superintendent Masear,
Mr. Greening (Board attorney)
Members
absent: none
Guests: Mr. And Mrs. Brandt, Mr. Vandemore, Mr.
Baker, Mr. Hutchison, Mr. Smothers, Mr. & Mrs. Reeves, Mrs. J. Smith, Mrs.
Mennel, Mrs. Ingold, Mr. & Mrs. Willis, Ms. Bernius, Mr. Prince, Mrs. J.
Short, Mrs. Polson, Mr. Newlan, Mrs. Homan, Mrs. Knight, Mrs. Scronce, Mrs.
Walker, Mr. & Mrs. Hoffman, Mrs. Koeppel, Mr. & Mrs. Denniston, Mr.
& Mrs. Avery, Mr. Shane, Ms. Winkler, Mrs. Leverton, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Hajny,
Ms. Raynor, Mr. & Mrs. Britton, Mr. M. Short, Mr. Schwader, Mrs.
Bainbridge, Mr. Marshall, Mr. & Mrs. Ralston, Mrs. Knutson, Representatives
of WMBD, WEEK, WHOI, the Peoria Journal Star, and 2 visitors whose names could
not be read. There were also several audience members present who were not able
or unaware of the sign-in sheet.
Mrs.
Short administered the oath of office to Mrs. Schwader who then took her place
on the board.
Approval of Minutes: Motion made by Mr. Buttice/Mr. Van Beuning to approve the minutes
of January 17, 2002, as amended. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried.
Citizens Request: Prior to proceeding with the citizen’s request, Mrs. Short read a
prepared statement from the board addressing the issue of how to address the
board and the rules of conduct while addressing the board.
Mrs.
Kathy Brandt read a prepared statement, a copy of which was provided to all
board members.
Mr.
Larry Prince addressed the board on problems he has with the student discipline
policy and the amount of suspensions issued this year. Commented on his son
receiving 3 suspensions so far this year.
Ms.
Julia Raynor & Mr. Joseph Hajny addressed the board on the student
discipline policy and the amount of blue/yellow slips issued and the number of
suspensions. They also complained about a problem with no medical personnel on
staff at the school and on their daughter not being allowed access to her
asthma inhaler. They also had questions about the bathroom break policy during
lunch.
Mr.
Roger Lynch addressed the board about problems he and his family have had with
previous administrations and boards.
Mrs.
Rebecca Mennel addressed the board on the lunch detention policy and worried
about her child eating lunch on the bathroom floor. Mrs. Masear advised the
changes she has made in the lunch detention since coming to the district.
Mrs.
Knutson asked the board how they will notify parents of the board decisions and
answers to the complaints received.
Mrs.
Gail Craig addressed the board on problems with the school lunch detention
procedure. She also had questions about the way staff and teachers treat
students. She complained that her child was forced to eat lunch on the bathroom
floor in 2000. She was also concerned that her child had been locked out of the
building for over an hour last year.
Mr.Ed
Newlan addressed the board in support of the school, programs and quality of
student graduating from Robein. He also encouraged parents to get involved in
school events.
Mr.
Mike Denniston voiced support for the board. He also spoke on how kids will be
kids and may not tell the whole story the way it really happened. He was
supportive of the teachers and the work they have done with his child.
Mr.
Steve Mahrt addressed the board concerning the student discipline policy,
specifically as it related to a fight that occurred on the school bus. He does
not feel the rules were properly followed.
Mr.
Ralston addressed the board in support of the school and the board. He did
express concerns about the harassment of students and asked that staff and
teachers do not just dismiss student claims and to be proactive as related to
student harassment.
At
the completion of the citizens request portion of the meeting, Mrs. Short read
a prepared statement thanking all the parents for their input. She also noted
several letters that were received prior to the board meeting speaking in
support of the school and the board.
Treasurer’s Report: Motion made by Mr. Buttice/Mr. Dearing to approve
the treasurer’s report. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried.
Warrants: Mrs. Masear went over the first page of the warrants
which was not sent with the board packets. Mr. Knight had a question about the
purchase of scorebooks from Brunk’s Sporting Goods for $72.00. Mrs. Masear
explained this was for score books and new game ball for the season. There was
also a question on a bank charge, Mrs. Masear explained this was for a bad
check that was returned. Motion made by Mr. Visocky/Mr. Buttice to approve the
warrants. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried.
Superintendent’s Report:
Mrs. Masear informed the board that curriculum
guides for math and language arts have been worked on. The math guide draft has
been completed and should be on the school website within a week. The new state
standards have been integrated into the curriculum guides. The language arts
guide will be on the website shortly after the math guide.
Science Fair. Mr. Baker reported on the school
science fair results. Eleven students received outstanding ratings on their
projects and are qualified to participate in the regional science fair to be
held March 23, 2002, at Western Illinois University. The students qualified to
compete are: Nicole Raker, Megan Hale, Elisha Williamson, Elizabeth Mahrt,
Nathan Walker, Alexis Shelly, Amy Orr, Justin Messmore, Andy Crebo, Devin
Ralston, and Derek Rutledge. Congratulations to all students and good luck at
regional.
Technology grant. The school tech plan has been
approved and we will be receiving our Closing the Gap funds shortly in the
amount of $19,000. These funds will be used to purchase a new server and
several new computers. It will also be used to purchase new software used to
maintain grade books on the computers in the classroom and computerize the
student report cards. There is also a requirement that staff attend tech
seminars and that tech seminars be provided to parents.
Curriculum: Covered in Superintendent
comments.
Technology: Covered in Superintendent comments.
Sports: The question of numbers for
7th and 8th grade cheerleading squads was addressed. The
committee agreed that the numbers had been set at 6 for each squad for a total
of 12 girls on the cheerleading squad. This may not have been entirely clear
and will be clarified in writing.
Policy: Board was provided copies of the new policies
approved at the last board meeting.
Labor/Negotiations: No report.
Building: Update on the lower grade wing boys bathroom. The
remodeling has been completed, and the bathroom looks great. We will start
looking into remodeling the girls bathroom in the wing to maintain some
consistency in appearance. The upper grade wing needs 4 or 5 more white boards
to complete the switchover. Mr. Baker, Mrs. Bare, Mr. Vandemore and Mrs. Browns
rooms are needing new boards. Summer maintenance position was addressed. We
need to establish a job description and wage rate. We may also want to look at
having 2 part-time positions. We are looking at doing some landscaping in the
front of the building. Want to plant some shrubs and decorative plants in the
flower beds at the front of the school. The doors need to be numbered from the
outside to assist police/fire/ems personnel in the event of an emergency. The
gym door has not been repaired. Mr. Knight and Mr. Dearing will look into
obtaining the necessary replacement. The gate for the north driveway is on hold
at this time while we look for some less obtrusive means of preventing vehicles
from using the drive while students are present.
Discipline: No report.
Audience Participation: None
Old Business: Mrs. Masear outlined some possible uses for the
money received from the State track meet last year. Top on the list is $3,000
to purchase white boards for the upper grade classrooms that do not have them
yet.
New Business: School calendar for school year 02-03. Tentatively
set to start August 21, 2002 and end May 30, 2003. Will include 2 weeks off at
Christmas, and Easter break will be April 14-18, 2003. The calendar will
attempt to follow the high school calendar as closely as possible. Looking at
having open house the 1st week in October and will try to have a day
where the parents can come in without their children to see how the classroom
is set up and what the students are doing in class. Mrs. Masear and the
teachers are looking at ways to improve the parent/teacher conferences to make
better use of the parents and teachers time.
Other Business:
A.
Board
retreat. We need to have a board retreat and new board member training to bring
the new board members up to speed on where we are and what we are trying to
accomplish. IASB will provide information and assistance. This will probably
occur over a couple of days with the first tentative date March 12, 2002 at
5:30 p.m.
B.
Kindergarten
registration will occur the week of March 4, 2002. Notices have been sent out
and should have been in local papers. Tenative numbers look to be down from
last year.
C.
Track
team. We have enough student interest to form 7th and 8th
grade boys and girls teams. Local schools are calling to set up meets. At this
time, we have no coach, but several volunteers have stepped forward and will
help whoever coaches. All normal means to find a coach have been exhausted and
Mrs. Masear is looking for any suggestions.
D.
Bus
camera. Some ideas have been checked out, but are cost prohibitive at this
time. Some lower cost alternatives are coming available and Mr. Van Beuning is
continuing to check on our possibilities.
Executive Session: Motion by Mr. Buttice/Mr. Dearing to enter executive
session. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried. The board entered
executive session at 8:05 p.m. to discuss personnel and parent complaint.
Motion made by Mr. Buttice/Mr. Dearing to return to open session. Motion voted.
Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried. The board returned to open session at 9:07 p.m.
Motions:
1.
Motion
made by Mr. Visocky/Mrs. Schwader to approve using $3,000 from the State track
meet funds to purchase new white boards for the upper grade wing. Motion voted.
Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried.
2.
Motion
made by Mr. Visocky/Mr. Dearing to accept the resignation of Vicki Snider as
school bus driver effective immediately. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion
carried.
3.
Motion
made by Mr. Van Beuning/Mr. Buttice to set the number of girls to be selected
for the 7th and 8th grade cheerleading squads at 6 girls
for each squad for a total of 12. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried.
Adjournment: Motion made by Mr. Dearing/Mrs. Schwader to adjourn
the meeting. Motion voted. Yeas-7, Nays-0. Motion carried. The meeting ended at
11:10 p.m.
Next
regular meeting is scheduled for March 21, 2002 at 6:00 p.m.
_________________________ ___________________________
Chris
Short, President Jeff Knight, Secretary