Board of Ed Meeting Report

Middletown middle schoolers who go to the math/science magnet school in Meriden are doing better on the CMT's than their peers who stay in town. That was the news delivered by staff from the Thomas Edison Magnet School who presented their statistics at Tuesday's Board of Ed meeting.

Here's a comparison of the scores of eighth-grade Middletown kids at TEMS, compared with the Middletown kids who attend Woodrow Wilson:

Math:
Reaching goal at TEMS: 60.5%
Reaching goal at WWMS: 49.5%

Reading:
Reaching goal at TEMS: 63.2%
Reaching goal at WWMS: 49.9%

Writing:
Reaching goal at TEMS: 56.4%
Reaching goal at WWMS: 49.9%

Perhaps the gap between TEMS and WWMS scores can be partly attributed to the self-selection of dedicated students who choose to apply to the magnet school -- it would be interesting to see a comparison of children who are statistically similar who attend the two schools. But in spite of their scores, TEMS failed to make "adequate yearly progress" last year, primarily because the No Child Left Behind legislation raises the bar each year. Therefore, although TEMS reports rising scores each year of the past four, they did not rise as quickly as No Child requires.

Other business at the Board meeting included the news that the noise problem in the new High School lab rooms appears to have been fixed with the installation of sound attenuators, and the building is moving closer to completion. During a discussion of budgetary concerns, Board member Corrinne Gill pointed out that as the building moves out of the warranty phase and becomes the full responsibility of the district, there needs to be a contingency fund to cover any possible problems.

Superintendent Michael Frechette updated the Board on the upcoming "Race to the Top" grant cycle. The process for applying for these funds, which total $4.3 billion nationally, with $400 million anticipated for Connecticut, is still not clear. The Superintendent has been meeting with other districts and the State Commissioner to learn more about how Connecticut can present a competitive application. It seemed that the Board is looking to these funds to fill in the gaps that our local and state spending can't support, such as new programs and adequate support for the District Improvement Plan. The Superintendent will be reporting to the Board again before an application is formally made.

Ken Jackson, the director of facilities, reported that JCJ Architecture is currently finalizing their recommendations and will be making their report about redistricting the elementary schools at the November Board meeting. Board members Jay Keiser and Sheila Daniels both asked that a process be established for community input after that meeting, perhaps including two or three community forums in December so that the recommendations can be reviewed before decisions are made in January. (Also, during the Public Session, I used my "five minutes" to speak about my concerns about JCJ's methodology and arithmetic skills; I'll say more on this topic in another post.)

As the first step in preparing next year's budget, the Board directed the Superintendent to prepare a "rollover" budget, with only contracted increases included. Other items such as new initiatives or more ideal levels of staffing are to be included on a separate list of items that might be funded with stimulus dollars or the Race to the Top grant, but would not be included in the regular city budget. Board member Sheila Daniels was the only dissenter in this motion, as she preferred to see the Superintendent prepare a budget that reflected the kind of district that the Superintendent would recommend, if budgets were not so tight. She said: "Yes, we want to see the status quo, but we also want to see the reach -- it's important for us to have that and to show the City." Member Sally Boske also spoke to the importance of "knowing what we are missing"; although she supported the motion, she said she "always feels a little funny not seeing a budget that would show some kind of progress." The Superintendent is expected to present his draft of a budget at the December meeting.

Tuesday's meeting was held in the Council Chambers at City Hall, and for those in the room (and hopefully those viewing on Channel 19 at home), it was a much improved experience. Generally, the comments by Board members and speakers were clear, which is not always the case when the Board meets at the High School cafeteria. Their third occasional venue, the tiny conference room at the Board of Ed offices on Hunting Hill Avenue, is not wired for TV coverage and is less accessible than the other spaces.

The big question in using the Council Chambers, however, is in whether the room can be reserved on a regular basis - in fact, next month's meeting has to move because City Hall is already booked. The meeting date has been changed too, due to a conflict with the swearing-in of new Board members after the November 3rd election; look for the Board to meet next on November 17th at 7 pm at the library at the new Middletown High.