Lyme School District
Special School Board Meeting
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Meeting Minutes
(approved with changes 10/25/07)
Board Members Present: Peter Glenshaw, Audrey Brown, Kevin Kerin,
Kathy McGowan, Maggie Minnock, (unofficial Mark Schiffman). Staff
Members Present: Gordon Schnare, Jeff Valence; Recorder: Roger
Lohr
1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.
by Board Chair Peter Glenshaw.
2. Business Requiring Discussion
The Board discussed the Strategic Plan with a first focus on the
newest sections including Personnel and Student Life. There will
be another review of the document for grammatical errors and Maggie
Minnock volunteered to help with the format and design of the
document.
Library
The newest Lyme School “shared values” would be inserted
in the Strategic Plan. With regard to the plan’s section
about the library, the Board felt it should include an introduction
and be summarized in a bullet format so that it has an equal weight
to other elements within the document. The details could be incorporated
into an appendix.
Resources
Regarding the Resources section it was suggested that the mission
statement be incorporated into an introduction and that facilities
and finance could be bulleted sections. It was also suggested
that a chart show planned accomplishments for each year. Additionally,
the Board discussed including mention of a contingency plan for
potential substantial enrollment fluctuations.
Personnel
It was felt that professional development be included in the Personnel
section and that teachers implement the school mission and values
while being adaptive to student performance and needs. The Board
has high expectations of the faculty to meet student needs, which
has been developed through discussion within the community and
the faculty and then set by the School Board. A focus on quality
education was also seen as appropriate in the Personnel section
of the plan. There also would be mention to investigate alternative
staff compensation.
Student Life
With regard to the Student Life section in the plan, it was clear
that consensus supporting student voice and empowerment is paramount.
The Board listed aspects of student life and recognized that continued
opportunities for personal growth and contributions to the school
and community extend beyond the classroom. There is strong support
for the “one school” (among the elementary and middle
grades) where students’ experiences and relationships are
such a significant aspect of their lives.
Finance
The Board discussed perspectives of the intention to investigate
health insurance benefits and the Dresden memorandum of understanding.
It was felt that there were ways to decrease health insurance
expenses. Additionally, the Board recognized that the Dresden
agreement was due to expire in 2014. The nature of the budget’s
uncontrollable aspects such as special education and the high
school tuition are recognized. Using the goal of the northeast
urban CPI plus one percent is acceptable for the Board as a budget
guideline.
Governance
The Superintendent suggested that the Strategic Plan include mention
of a transition plan when the SAU staff might need to be replaced.
It would be appropriate to incorporate this issue in the personnel
section of the plan. Alternative governance models could also
be investigated.
Other
The list of board committees will be inserted in the document.
The Board is slated to vote on the Strategic Plan at the Lyme
School Board meeting scheduled for October 25. Kathy McGowan will
take the final draft of the Strategic Plan to the Budget Committee
meeting scheduled for October 30.
Peter Glenshaw will try to bring more information about foundations
to the next Board meeting in a discussion about targeting and
timing of the fundraising effort and potential foundation. The
Board also discussed holding a budget forum in November to explain
the process and open an informed dialogue in the community about
the budget. Babysitting and food would be available at the forum.
3. Adjournment: There was a motion and approval to adjourn the
meeting at 8:30 p.m. (Brown, McGowan). The motion passed unanimously.
The next Regular Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, October
25, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.
