Lyme School District
School Board Meeting
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Meeting Minutes

Board Members Present: Peter Glenshaw, Mary Beck, Audrey Brown, Kevin Kerin, Kathy McGowan, Dan Parish. Staff Members Present: Gordon Schnare, Jeff Valence; Jennifer Wilcox. Recorder: Roger Lohr

1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 7:08 p.m. by Board Chair Peter Glenshaw. The Board confirmed to meet on Tuesday, June 19 to discuss the Strategic Plan.

2. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Kerin) to approve the minutes from the May 24, 2007 Lyme School Board Meeting, as submitted with changes. The motion was passed unanimously. The change was on item D, paragraph 4 that Kathy McGowan would be replaced on the Policy Committee.

A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Brown) to approve the minutes of the May 24, 2007 Lyme School Board Nonpublic Meeting, as submitted. The motion was passed unanimously.

3. Communications and Reports
A. Chair Report: Chairman Glenshaw distributed and provided an overview of the Strategic Plan. The plan is 80 percent complete and the areas that still need to be completed include student life and communication. The Board will discuss the Strategic Plan at the meeting set for next week and the goal is to publish the plan in August before the beginning of the next school year.

B. Superintendent’s Report:
Superintendent Schnare distributed the financial report and there is a projected $88,000 surplus. Part of the surplus will be used to acquire a water softener and $50,000 will be put into the High School Trust. The budget surplus will result in a reduction in town taxes to be applied next year.

The Food Service deficit is expected to be about $11,000 and some of that was due to the need to purchase plates and cups as the dishwasher could not be used because of the water problems. The daily average number of lunches was 107, which was a substantial increase over the past.

The Superintendent discussed archiving email communication among the Board. It was suggested that such communication be saved for 30 days and that email that is related to potential litigation must not be destroyed. The Board discussed getting school email addresses. Money for students that took driver’s education has not been distributed yet.

C. Principal’s Report: Principal Valence reported the enrollment for next year as: kindergarten = 19; 1st grade = 21 or 22; 2nd grade = 20; 3rd grade = 16 or 17; 4th grade = 18; 5th grade = 12 or 13; 6th grade = 25 or 26; 7th grade = 26 or 27; and 8th grade = 15. The final enrollment depends on families that move in or leave Lyme and late August is usually the time to get school registrations. The total enrollment for next year ranges from 172 to 177. Kathy McGowan said she would forward information regarding 20 years of school enrollment. Last year began at 179 and ended at 186, so it is projected that the enrollment will be above 180 this coming year. The Board discussed enrollment pressures on the grade levels and class size.

D. Committee Reports
The Library Committee report was distributed and it includes three recommendations. A shared library facility should remain between the town and the school; there should be dedicated library staff for the school; and a new advisory committee should be established to support the town/school interface that would include representatives from the Trustees, the School Board, and the town Select Board. This committee would help to increase communication, support the library, and oversee resources and efficiency.

The Finance Committee distributed a document of the special education budget including a historical and relative perspective of the budget. Many people in the town are not familiar with special education as an unfunded state mandate. Increasing awareness of the entire budget and the expenses associated with it are part of the Strategic Plan. State reimbursements in this area rarely exceed 35 percent of expenses. The special education expenses are 18 percent of the total school budget and this year the budget was $725,000 compared with the teacher salaries of $837,000. It was mentioned that high school special education costs are more expensive than those in the Lyme School and that the school undertakes early intervention to keep future costs lower.

4. Business Requiring Discussion
The Board discussed policy JIH about student searches in a first reading. The Board voiced consensus support of the Board Meeting Calendar after deciding to not hold a meeting in July.

5. Business Requiring Action
A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Kerin) to allow Support Staff to participate in the health reimbursement account and the dependent care account. The motion passed unanimously.

A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Beck) to approve the Lyme School Technology Plan as submitted at the June Lyme School Board meeting. The motion passed unanimously. The Board discussed continuing investigating better pricing for an Internet provider for the school.

A motion was made and seconded (Parish, Kerin) to approve Audrey Brown as the replacement of Mary Beck as Manifest Signer and Peter Glenshaw as the backup signer. The motion passed unanimously.

A motion was made and seconded (Kerin, Brown) to approve the Thetford Academy Partnership agreement, as submitted and attached to the original minutes of the meeting with amendments. The motion passed unanimously.
The Board discussed replacing Mary Beck’s position as Board member, as she is leaving Lyme. There are two years remaining in the term and the Board would like to appoint a candidate during July. Kevin Kerin will head a subcommittee to search for candidates and Peter Glenshaw will also serve on the subcommittee. The committee will advertise for Board candidates, review the candidates, and nominate a new Board member. The subcommittee will inform the Board about the process to appoint the new Board member at the next Board meeting.

A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Kerin) to pay Superintendent Schnare for the number of extra days beyond the contract. The motion passed unanimously.

6. Non Public Session
A motion was made and seconded (Brown, Glenshaw) to enter nonpublic session in accordance with RSA 91-A3 (II. (a) & (c)) for discussion of matters relating to personnel and pupils. The motion passed unanimously. At 9:04 p.m. the roll call was conducted and the Lyme School Board entered non public session.

A motion was made and seconded (McGowan, Kerin) to re-enter public session. The motion passed unanimously. The Board reopened the public session of the Lyme School Board meeting at 9:28 p.m.

A motion was made and seconded (Kerin, Brown) to accept the recommendation of the ITE Committee to approve the funds to Jane Officer and Bonnie Cornell. The motion passed unanimously.

7. Adjournment: There was a motion and approval to adjourn the meeting at 9:30 p.m. (McGowan, Kerin). The motion passed unanimously.

The manifests were reviewed and signed by the authorized Board members. Next regular board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 19, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.