Minutes – Workshop Meeting – Board of Education – New Paltz Central High School – September 16, 2009 – 7:00 PM

CALL MEETING TO ORDER                                                                                                                                 CALL TO ORDER
Meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM by Donald Kerr, Board Vice President.

BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT:        David Dukler (arrived 9:05 PM)                                                                QUORUM CHECK
Kathleen Tobin Flusser
Steven Greenfield (arrived 7:09 PM)
Donald Kerr
Patrick Rausch
Edgar Rodriguez
Daniel Torres

ALSO PRESENT:                 Maria Rice, Superintendent of Schools
                                                                Connie Hayes, Assistant Superintendent for Pupil Personnel Services
                                                                Barbara Clinton, Principal, New Paltz Central High School
                                                                Michelle Martoni, Principal, Lenape Elementary School
                                                                Debra Hogencamp, Principal, Duzine Elementary School
                                                                Bill Richers, Director of Information & Communications Technology
                                                                Beverly Sickler, District Clerk
                                                                Members of the Public and Press
ROLL CALL                                                                                                                                                                        ROLL CALL

The roll was called as reflected above.

PLEDGE TO THE FLAG

AGENDA CHANGES                                                                                                                                                          AGENDA
                                                                                                                                                                                                CHANGES
Vice President Kerr announced the following Addendum to the Agenda:

 

ADDENDUM

PERSONNEL

ADD the following name to existing Personnel Item 12.4 Coaching Appointments

Donald Bartlett                                     Varsity Boys Track Coach                  Stipend - $4464.00

OMIT the following name from existing Personnel Item 12.6 Non-Instructional Appointments

Nina Hein                              Substitute School Monitor                 9/8/2009                                 $9.00/hr                  as needed
Nina Hein                              Substitute Teacher Aide                     9/8/2009                                 $10.00/hr                as needed
Nina Hein                              Substitute Clerical                                9/8/2009                                 $12.00/hr                as needed

NEW BUSINESS

14.3        Request for Approval to Accept the Full Environmental Assessment from J. Kenneth Fraser and Associates
Recommendation – that the following resolution be approved:

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby accept as part of the SEQR process the Full Environmental Assessment from J. Kenneth Frazer and Associates for the New Paltz Middle School Renovations and Addition Master Plan.

 

 

Addendum (continued)

14.4        Request for Approval to Use School Buses on October 3, 2009 for the Opening of the Walkway
Recommendation – that the following resolution be approve:
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby approve use of one bus each by the Village of New Paltz, Town of New Paltz and Town of Gardiner on October 3, 2009 to transport residents to the opening of the Walkway over the Hudson River, pending approval by each of
the three municipalities.

    1.       Request for Approval to Appoint Ameresco – Energy Performance Contract

Recommendation – that the following resolution be approved:

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education appoints Ameresco in accordance with a proposal dated August 20, 2009, which proposal shall be incorporated by reference within the minutes of this meeting, to conduct the Energy Performance Contract with the Energy Conservation Measure Scope to be determined by the District’s Facilities Committee.

 

Motion made by Steven Greenfield and seconded by Daniel Torres that the
Board of Education accept the agenda as amended by the addendum.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

PUBLIC COMMENTS                                                                                                                                                       PUBLIC
                                                                                                                                                                                                COMMENT

Bill Weinstein, New Paltz – South Putt Corners Road Repaving                                                                

 

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORTS & DISCUSSION ITEMS

  1. SUPERINTENDENT COMMENTS – Superintendent Rice read a report from Principal Dr. Wiesenthal regarding opening day at the middle school.  Principals Michelle Martoni, Debra Hogencamp and Barbara Clinton all shared the events of opening day at each of their schools.  Dr. Wiesenthal and each of the principals present explained how they plan to incorporate President Obama’s Speech into the curriculum employing age appropriate activities and lessons. Mrs. Rice briefly reported on her first Superintendent’s Coffee and her discussion regarding the new District Calendar and the Middle School Building Project.

 

Superintendent Rice announced that there are some serious issues concerning the boilers at the high school.  Since they will need to be fired up by October 15th, an emergency situation exists.  She invited Steve Callahan, Director of Facilities, to explain to the members the nature of the problem. Due to failed chambers in some of the boilers, repairs are indicated.  Discussion followed with suggestions on how to remedy the situation. Superintendent Rice recommended that board action to approve the following resolution would be appropriate as a start in dealing with the emergency nature of the situation.

Motion made by Patrick Rausch and seconded by Dan Torres that the Board of
Eduation approve the following resolution:

                                                                                APPOINT AMERESCO – ENERGY PERFORMANCE CONTRACT

14.5      Request for Approval to Appoint Ameresco – Energy Performance Contract
Recommendation – that the following resolution be approved:

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education appoints Ameresco in accordance with a proposal dated August 20, 2009, which proposal shall be incorporated by reference within the minutes of this meeting, to conduct the Energy Performance Contract with the Energy Conservation Measure Scope to be determined by the District’s Facilities Committee.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

 

  1. STIPEND DATA FOR ELECTION CUSTODIAN – Beverly Sickler, District Clerk, appealed to the board to increase the stipend for the Election Custodian from $200 to $275.  Members asked for more data to justify the raise such as what are the town, village and other school districts are paying and how many machines are involved in each election.

BOARD COMMUNICATIONS (20 MIN)

  1. STUDENT PREPARATION FOR COLLEGE – Daniel Torres, newly elected board member and high school student last year,  attributed the educational and social development that he experienced while a student at New Paltz Central High School as being beneficial in preparing him to enter college.  Superintendent Rice announced that the Alumni Survey is forthcoming.

 

Patrick Rausch moved that New Business item 14.3 be moved up to this part of the meeting so that Louis Turpin from Rhinebeck Architect & Planning could answer questions regarding the resolution. Motion was seconded by Dan Torres.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

Mr. Louis Turpin from Rhinebeck Architect & Planning entertained questions from the board regarding the timetable of events for the Middle School Building Project. Discussion took place regarding the upcoming SEQR Hearing and the need for the board to approve a negative declaration, a legal requirement which is a statement by the board that the environmental impact of the project will be zero or so small that there are no mitigating factors to eliminate them.

14.3        Request for Approval to Accept the Full Environmental Assessment from J. Kenneth Fraser and Associates

Motion made by Daniel Torres and seconded by Patrick Rausch that the Board of
Education approve the following resolution:

                                                                                MIDDLE SCHOOL SEQR PROCESS -ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMEMT
                                                                                                                J. KENNETH FRAZER & ASSOCIATES

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby accept as part of the SEQR process the Full Environmental Assessment from J. Kenneth Frazer and Associates for the New Paltz Middle School Renovations and Addition Master Plan.

Question and answers continued with Mr. Turpin providing input.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

 

  1. AGREEMENT ON NYSSBA PROPOSED RESOLUTIONS – Vice President Kerr asked if any members have different positions than what NYSSBA has stated in the resolutions booklet.  Members listed numbers 1, 2, 9, 15 and 16 as resolutions about which they have concerns. Discussion followed.  Members agreed that more time was required for some members to review the resolutions.

Motion made by Patrick Rausch and seconded by Kathleen Tobin Flusser that the board delay this discussion until the next meeting.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

 

  1. SOUTH PUTT CORNERS ROAD IMPROVEMENTS

 

Motion made by Patrick Rausch and seconded by Kathleen Tobin Flusser to approve the following resolution:

9.1          Request for Approval to Support the Repaving of South Putt Corners Road
Recommendation – that the following resolution be approved:

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education of the New Paltz Central School District supports the efforts of the New Paltz Bicycle-Pedestrian Committee to improve safety on South Putt Corners Road for students, staff and community members by repaving this critical artery to the New Paltz Central High School thus providing safer passage of this thoroughfare for both motorized and non-motorized users; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Education encourages Ulster County Department of Public Works to set this project as a priority, ensuring that the work commences as soon as possible by remaining the third item on the list of highway projects in Ulster County.

Motion carried 6 – 0 with 6 members voting.

A letter of support will be sent to the appropriate individuals as requested in a letter from the New Paltz Bicycle-Pedestrian Committee to the Board of Education. 

COMMITTEE REPORTS

  1. AUDIT & FINANCE COMMITTEE – Patrick Rausch announced that the next meeting will take place on September 23 at 6:30 PM.  He listed all of the items that will appear on the agenda with hopes to cover as many of them as possible.

 

  1. FACILITIES COMMITTEE – Donald Kerr asked for guidance from the board regarding his role as the chair and next steps to take. He asked for a brief written explanation from our vendors to address the question of design concept 1 and how it differs from design concept 1 previously presented for the Middle School Building Project.   There is a cost differential in the millions.  Mr. Kerr would like information from each of the vendors. The question of the educational value of the increased space was also asked.

President Dukler arrived at 9:05 PM and took over leadership of the meeting as discussion continued.
 

  1. POLICY COMMITTEE – David Dukler announced that the next meeting will be on September 23. 
  1. HEALTH ADVISORY COMMITTEE – Daniel Torres reported on the first HAC meeting held on Tuesday.  School based marketing was discussed and new members were introduced. The next meeting is November 3.

 

MINUTES OF MEETING   

Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Daniel Torres
that the Board of Education approve the following resolution:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   MINUTES
BE IT RESOLVED that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education accept the                                            9/2/09
minutes of the Regular Business Meeting of September 2, 2009.
                                                                                                                                                                                               
Motion carried 7 - 0 with 7 members voting.

 

 

 

 

PERSONNEL (CONSENT AGENDA)                                                                                                                             PERSONNEL
Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Daniel Torres that the Board of
Education approve the following personnel (consent agenda) resolutions:

12.1        Instructional Appointment - Mentors
Recommendation - that the New Paltz Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby appoint the following instructional employees as mentors for the 2009/2010 school year:

Mary Fisher
MaryBeth Ferrante

12.2        Instructional Substitute Appointments - Certified
Recommendation that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent, does hereby appoint the following certified substitute teachers at a per diem rate of $100 for the 2009/2010 school year:

Carrie Amanda Bryant

Ann Mowry

Sarah Doyle

Elizabeth Ryan

Megan Joslin

Marcy Thorn

James Meyers

Rebecca Wells

Brenda Mentz

Christina Valesente

12.3        Instructional Substitute Appointments - Uncertified
Recommendation that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent, does hereby appoint the following uncertified substitute teachers at a per diem rate of $80 for the 2009/2010 school year:

Melissa Bernardini

Sara Davidson

Luci Miller

Laura Gertler

Sharon Moran

 

Jessica Mutter

 

12.4        Coaching Appointments
Recommendation  - that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent, does hereby appoint the following coaches for the 2009-2010 school year:

Name                                      Position                                 Stipend
Jon Stern                               Cross Country                                      Unpaid Assistant
Christopher Brooker            JV Wrestling                                         $3030.00
Harry Cooper                        Varsity Gymnastics                              $3570.00
Donald Bartlett                     Varsity Boys Track Coach $4464.00

12.5        Non-Instructional Resignation
 Recommendation - that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria Rice,                 
 Superintendent of Schools, does hereby accept the resignation of the following non-instructional employee:
Name                                      Title                                                       Effective Date
Rosalia Stropoli                    School Monitor                                    9/5/2009

12.6        Non-Instructional Appointments
Recommendation - that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby appoint the following:

Name                                      Title                                                       Effective Date                       Salary                    Hours    
Donna Bishop                      Substitute Food Service Helper         9/2/2009                                 $10.00/hr                as needed
Evelyn Krusen                      Substitute Food Service Helper         9/2/2009                                 $10.00/hr                as needed
Eileen Gatto                           Substitute School Bus Driver            9/21/2009                               $20.00/hr                as needed
Robert Cusack                      School Bus Driver                                9/17/2009                               $22.20/hr                5.5 hrs/day
Donna Harder                       School Bus Driver                                9/17/2009                               $22.20/hr                5 hrs/day
Alexis Montalvo                  Substitute School Bus Driver            9/8/2009                                 $20.00/hr                as needed
Alan Marks                           Substitute School Bus Driver            9/8/2009                                 $20.00/hr                as needed
Helen Hansen                       Substitute Food Service Helper         9/2/2009                                 $10.00/hr                as needed
Ellen Sebald                          Substitute School Nurse                     9/8/2009                                 $100/day                as needed

12.7        Non-Instructional Leaves of Absence
Recommendation – that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby approve unpaid leaves of absence for the following non-instructional employees:

Name                                      Title                                                       Effective
Elaine Purdy                          School Lunch Cashier                         8/26/2009 – 10/5/2009
Clarissa Blue                         Food Service Helper                            9/1/2009 – 9/7/2009

12.8        Home Tutors
Recommendation - that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice,  Superintendent of Schools, does hereby appoint the following instructional employees, on an as-needed basis with remuneration as per NPUT contract effective for the 2009-2010 school year:


Jill Belgrave
Ron Bonagura
Rebecca Burdett
Janet Chapman
Kristin Conrad
Juliann DeLeo
Michelle Diana    
Shawn Doyle       
Mary Beth Ferrante
Isabelle Grizolet-Evans       
Joe Haas               
Denise Hoyt
Souad Kurzban    
Erin Paltridge
Jennifer Pizzarello
Allan Podell
Kim Sturgis
Barbara Weiner
Claudia Battaglia 
Michael Brady     
Ann Paula Friedland
Charleen Gottschalk
Cynthia Listort
John Miller
Sandra Panman
Charnikia Pinsett
Debra Ricci
Sam Slotnick
Elissa Staub
Richard Van den Huevel
Ekaterini Vlamis
Lilah Weiss
Mary Beth Woodburn


12.9        Correcting Resolution:  Occupational Therapist – Probationary Instructional Appointment
Recommendation – that the New Paltz Central Schools Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent, does hereby approve a correcting resolution to amend the salary of the following Occupational Therapist: (Salary was incorrectly approved on September 2, 2009 as MA, Step B  $58,030.)

Paul Scarpati         Occupational Therapist                      Effective 9/1/09                     MA, Step A  $59,480 annually

 

MOTION carried 7 - 0 with 7 members voting.

 

OLD BUSINESS                                                                                                                                            OLD BUSINESS

None

  

NEW BUSINESS (Consent Agenda)                                                                                                         NEW BUSINESS

Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Patrick Rausch that the Board of
Education approve the following Consent Agenda items 14.1, 14.2 and 14.4 as follows:

14.1        Request for Approval of Committee on Special Education Recommendations and Student Placements
Recommendation - that the following resolution be approved:  BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approve the following Committee on Special Education (CSE) and Committee on Pre-School Special Education (CPSE) recommendations and student placements: 9150, 11332, 11515, 11172, 11546, 9824, 10605, 11319, 11054, 11530, 10874.

14.2        Request for Approval to Appoint Members to the Health Advisory Committee (HAC)
Recommendation - that the following resolution be approved:  BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education appoint the following members to the Health Advisory Committee in the specified category as follows:

Iris Avishai-Cohen – Parent Member                                               Effective 9/17/09 – 6/30/2010
(filling unfinished term of Mathew Swerdloff)

Angie Skretta – Parent Member                                                        Effective 9/17/09 – 6/30/2011

Ramona Kacyvenski – Community Member                                   Effective 9/17/09 – 6/30/2011

Richard Kleiger – Community Safety Personnel Member             Effective 9/17/09 – 6/30/2011

Joy Van Vlack – Duzine Teacher Representative                           Effective 9/17/09 – 6/30/2011

14.3        Request for Approval to Accept the Full Environmental Assessment from J. Kenneth Fraser and Associates

Resolution 14.3 was approved earlier in the meeting.

14.4        Request for Approval to Use School Buses on October 3, 2009 for the Opening of the Walkway
Recommendation – that the following resolution be approve:

BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education, upon the recommendation of Maria C. Rice, Superintendent of Schools, does hereby approve use of one bus each by the Village of New Paltz, Town of New Paltz and Town of Gardiner on October 3, 2009 to transport residents to the opening of the Walkway over the Hudson River, pending approval by each of
the three municipalities.

Motion to approve Consent Agenda items 14.1, 14.2 and 14.4 carried 7 – 0 with 7 members voting.

 

14.5      Request for Approval to Appoint Ameresco – Energy Performance Contract

Resolution 14.5 was approved earlier in the m meeting.

                                                                                                                                                                                               
PUBLIC COMMENTS                                                                                                                                                       PUBLIC
            COMMENT

None

 

 

 

 

EXECUTIVE SESSION                                                                                                                                                      EXECUTIVE
                                                                                                                                                                                                SESSION
Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Daniel Torres to move into
Executive Session at 9:30 PM to discuss the employment history of a particular
individual and contract negotiations.

Motion carried 7 - 0 with 7 members voting.

BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT:                                                                                                                              QUORUM CHECK
                                                                David Dukler
Kathleen Tobin Flusser
Steven Greenfield
Donald Kerr
Patrick Rausch
Edgar Rodriguez
Daniel Torres

Out of Executive Session
Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Daniel Torres that the Board                                                         RETURN
return to Public Session at 10:48 PM.                                                                                                                               PUBLIC
                                                                                                                                                                                                SESSION
Motion carried 7 - 0 with 7members voting.

                                                                                                                                                                               
ADJOURN                                                                                                                                                                            ADJOURN
Motion made by Donald Kerr and seconded by Daniel Torres that the Board
adjourn at 10:48 PM.

Motion carried 7 - 0 with 7 members voting.

 

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

________________________
Beverly J. Sickler
District Clerk