Mount Desert School Department
Mount Desert School Committee
Minutes
The Mount Desert School Committee held a meeting on Wednesday, 5 May 2010, with the following
members present: Chair Heather Jones, Brian Reilly, and Gail Marshall.
Absent: Charlie Wray and Laura Hendricks
Also present were Scott McFarland, Rob Liebow, Sumner Rulon-Miller, Davonne Pappas, Lauren
Koncinsky, and Cathy Burdette
CALL TO ORDER
Heather Jones called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
MOVED by Brian Reilly seconded by Gail Marshall, and unanimously voted to approve the minutes of
April 7, 2010 as written.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Sumner Rulon-Miller asked several questions about the written budget validation process and recycling in
the kitchen.
PRINCIPAL’S REPORT
Principal McFarland presented his report (see attached Principal’s Report)
DISCUSSION ITEMS
• 8th grade class trip Guidelines: 3 parents attended the class trip discussion and all voiced
concern about the money involved and the stress and strain that it puts on the community, family
and students. One parent also wanted to have clear guidelines in place for families in need that
families can access rather than to be approached by the school.
• Overview of Assessment Conference – Principal McFarland gave a very brief glimpse of his
assessment conference since the A-Team wanted time to process what was learned and what to
move forward on as a district.
• Island-Wide Sports Program – Principal McFarland reported to the committee that the island
athletic directors met and decided that the logistics of having island-wide sports teams at the
school level prevents this from being a possibility at this point.
• Maine Municipal Association Risk Management Report – Principal McFarland gave the
committee a quick summary of the risk management audit that was recently completed through
the Maine Municipal Association. All items are either in the process of being completed or will
be by the end of the summer.
• Blended Classrooms – Tabled for a later date since some decisions have not been made.
• Reserve Fund – Heather Jones will contact John Graves at the town office to set up a meeting to
discuss moving reserve funds into an interest bearing account.
Action Items:
• Authorization for Superintendent to Apply for and Receive State and Federal
Funds - MOVED by Gail Marshall, seconded by Brian Reilly, and unanimously voted to
authorize the Superintendent to apply for and receive state and federal funds.
• Election of Chairperson - MOVED by Brian Reilly, seconded by Gail Marshall and
unanimously voted to elect Heather Jones as Chairperson of the School Committee.
• Election of Vice Chairperson - MOVED by Gail Marshall, seconded by Heather Jones, and
unanimously voted to elect Brian Reilly as Vice Chairperson of the School Committee.
• Election of Truant Officer - MOVED by Gail Marshall, seconded by Brian Reilly, and
unanimously voted to elect the Police Chief of the Town of Mt. Desert as the school’s Truant
Officer.
• Election of Attendance Officer- MOVED by Gail Marshall, seconded by Brian Reilly, and
voted to elect the Principal of the Mt. Desert Elementary School as the school’s Attendance
Officer.
OTHER BUSINESS:
• M.O.U. for Race to the Top - MOVED by Brian Reilly, seconded by Heather Jones and voted
2-1 to authorize the Chair of the School Committee to sign-off on the M.O.U. (memorandum of
understanding) for the state’s application for federal Race to the Top Funds.
• AOS 91 and MDIHS School Committee Voting Members - MOVED by Brian Reilly
seconded by Gail Marshall and unanimously voted to elect Heather Jones, Brian Reilly and Gail
Marshall as the voting members at the AOS 91 and MDIHS School Committee meetings for May.
DATE, TIME AND PLACE OF NEXT MEETING
June 2, 2010 at 4:00 P.M. at Mount Desert Elementary School
ADJOURNMENT
MOVED by Brian Reilly seconded by Gail Marshall and unanimously voted to adjourn at 5:40 PM
Respectfully submitted,
Scott McFarland
Mount Desert Elementary School
Principal’s Report for May 5, 2010
Presented by Scott McFarland
1) This week is staff appreciation week. To show appreciation for the staff, the PTO will
be funding a social function after school on May 14th at the Colonel’s Restaurant
2) Arts Week was another great success with over 2 dozen visiting artists and parents
assisting students.
3) Last week we held kindergarten screening with a total of 19 students. Our annual
Demystifying Kindergarten Night will be held May 13th
4) Our Invention Fair will be held Thursday night from 6large composting bin system.
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