CTES Minutes 8/8/17 Mtg & 9/19 Agenda

Attached in PDF format are the unapproved minutes from the 8/8/17 Cavendish Town Elementary School Meeting, which included the following:

• Board Position Filled: Voted to approve Kate Lamphere to replace Bruce Pollard to GMUHS and on the GMUSD Boards . A mother of two children, Lamphere has lived in Cavendish since 2009. She is a licensed independent social worker, the Director of Adult Mental Addiction Service at HCRS Health Care and Rehabilitation Services. Pollard has recently moved out of town.

• Lunch/Breakfast program: Principal George Thomson said over 60% of students last year were on reduced or free lunch. This year everyone is being asked to fill out the forms even if they don’t think they qualify as statistics are used not only to providemeals but also have a bearing on Consolidated Federal Funds and the percentages given to schools. Parents and guardians are being encouraged to fill out the Free and Reduced Meal forms. To the idea that it might make sense just to provide all students with meals, Thompson notedthere is a program available for all students to receive free meals through the Department of Nutrition that has been looked into in the past (and this year) and found to be too costly to the local taxpayers.

The board approved an increase of 10 cents to the breakfast and lunch meals. Therefore, lunches are $2.90 and $1.60 for breakfast; a total increase of 20 cents per day and/or $1.00 per week. Pricing includes a drink.

• Media Policy: Voted to adopt D18 Employee Use of Social Networking, Social Media, Media Sites & Personal Sites policy with the amendment of “Employees are not allowed on social networking sites to invite students to be friends and/or members or accept invitations from students to be friends and/or members except for family members of the employees or students within the Supervisory Union."

• Bus Service: The School Bus position has been raised to $17.50 an hour. Thompson has been advertising for quite a while now and had a driver lined up, but the person required surgery. Thompson informed parents that they will have to provide transportation to and from school. They are contacting bus transportation companies for help but Butler Bus Services is having trouble finding drivers as well. This is a statewide problem.

• Arts Furniture: Approved the use of trust funds money in the amount of up to $1,200.00 to purchase 24 folding chairs for the Art Center.

•  New Hires: Nathan Marshall has been hired for late shift custodian.Due to resignations three Para-professionals have been hired; Catherine Tyrrell, Jennifer LaBarge and Jamie Steffen.

The agenda for the September 19 meeting is available in PDF format.