[SPEAKER_06]: This year, we have three. And the first year, we went to the national team.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yeah. th th I've been asking for this all year. Not even acknowledging it. I usually do it through the help desk, you know, that I love. But yeah. th th Okay, I'm gonna do it anyway though. but he wouldn't want to be in a relationship with that sort of thing. He would not want to do that. He would not want to do that.
[Burke]: A regular meeting of the Medford School Committee will now come to order. The secretary will call the roll.
[Mustone]: I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
[Burke]: Approval of the minutes of the February 11th 2019 meeting. Motion to approve by Mr. Benedetto, seconded by Mr. Ruggiero. All those in favor? All those opposed? Motion passes. Approval of bills. Transfer of funds. Mr. Benedetto. Thank you.
[DiBenedetto]: So, thank you for submitting the bills. On page 5 of 11, halfway down, it says a person's name, Smith Lena, and it says foreign language textbooks.
[Patterson]: So that would be a reimbursement for a purchase. Oh, OK.
[DiBenedetto]: That makes sense then. On page 7 of 11 and the beginning of 8 of 11, there is a repetitive payment to a person for professional services. And I saw it throughout the billing thing. Is that an employee, or is that?
[Patterson]: That is for the adult evening school program. So that's paying for professional services in the evening school program.
[DiBenedetto]: Which evening school program would that be?
[Patterson]: The electrical adult learning.
[DiBenedetto]: Great, thank you. Is that similar with, on page 9 of 11, fourth one up, another employee by the last name of Kirby, and the amount is $1,538?
[Patterson]: That is professional services under a grant for the IDEA. So these are contractors, they are not employees.
[DiBenedetto]: And then my last question is the last page, second from the last. It's just a large amount for McGlynn Middle School miscellaneous items for $5,900.
[Patterson]: Again, these are the student activity accounts that just go through as the warrants, so that is the student activity pass-through.
[DiBenedetto]: It just, it just seems greater than it usually have for that amount. Thank you for the answers. Thank you. Motion to approve.
[Burke]: Motion to approve by Mr. Benedetto, seconded by Mr. Rousseau. Roll call vote please.
[Mustone]: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
[Burke]: Yes. Seven in the affirmative, zero in the negative. Motion passes. I'd like to recognize Mr. Rousseau for suspension of the rules.
[Ruseau]: Yes, I'd like to suspend the rules. Take a few items out of order.
[Burke]: motion for suspension is there a second second for the second on the floor by mr. Benedetto all those in favor aye all those opposed suspension is granted to take papers two and three is there additional and nine two three and nine out of order on the motion all those in favor and ten and ten nine and ten okay Item two, recognition of Tristan Howard for accomplishments in track and field. Ms. DeLinch, are you present? Ms. DeLinch, step up to the podium.
[Lynch]: Hi, everybody. Not just myself, but this is Coach Donlan, of course. And Coach Dempsey is taking care of his mother-in-law in Florida, where we'd all like to be right now. So I didn't want to forget Coach Dempsey, who helped us out this year as well. We have a very special young man here with us. I've been coaching and involved in track and field in Medford for close to 30 years now. And I know it doesn't look it, but as an athlete and a coach, It's been very exciting, but it's also quite unique. We only have a state champion come through every few years, and we're very fortunate to have one just this past season, and Tristan Howard right here. Tristan Howard is here with his very supportive mom. His very supportive mom will watch a two minute or three minutes of racing of Tristan on a weekly basis, but remains at the track meet for over six hours. Track meets can be quite difficult if you've never had a son or daughter or a younger person in a track meet. They're long, stretched out days, and I appreciate all the support you give Tristan. I'll try to make it quick. Like I said, state champions only come through once in a while. I've probably coached a dozen of them. And this young man is remarkable. And I want to thank Emily Lazzaro for being patient with our schedule, because once you hear a few things about Tristan, you realize how busy he's been and how difficult it is to get to something like this. Just this past, right after the holidays rolling into January, he competed in the East Coast invitational in Providence, Rhode Island. He placed second in the 55-meter dash, and he placed third in the 200-meter dash. A week later, he entered the Massachusetts State Coaches Association Lodge School invitational, and he placed second in the dash. A week later, he goes to our Northeast Conference meet, and not only did he win the dash, he set a new record, a new conference record in the long jump. Thank you very much. And the funny thing is, as Coach Joe is reminding me, we only have an outdoor long jump pit. We do not have an indoor long jump pit. So it's even more remarkable to be a conference champion and set a record in that event, because you can only practice that event outdoors. OK, so that was wonderful to hear. And at the conclusion of that meet, he was nominated and named unanimously the Northeast MVP runner of the year, which is wonderful. A week later, he becomes division two state champion. He won the 300 meter dash, which he seems to think is a marathon, but it's not. Sprinters always try to compare 300 meter dashes and 400 meter dashes as if they're running a full marathon, a half marathon, but he's getting better and better at these distances and it's really remarkable. And then he moved on a week later, he went to the New England, just this past weekend. I'm sorry, he went to the all-state meet, which means everybody from the eastern part of Massachusetts to the western part of Massachusetts, all five divisions, he finished fourth place amongst everybody in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He's not done. I'm sorry. I'll be really quick, Joe. I'm almost done. And now he qualified for the New Englands. And he went on to all the New England states. And he finished eighth place out of all the New England athletes that qualified for the New Englands. Congratulations in the New Englands. Now Coach Joe has the honor of taking him to New York City this weekend for the Nationals. It's pretty impressive. And the best story I can relate it to is when you see a young guy like this or a young lady, and it's been a while. I really do think they make an impression on our community, our high school, our city as a whole. And the example I'll give you for that is my younger daughter who is eight and she's been in track and field since she was four. She goes, dad, why are you always at those track meets? You're there all day. I go, let me show you the kid that's on the team and how fast he is. So I show her the video clip and then I show her another video clip. She looks, she goes, I can beat him. Her older sister, who's nine, goes, no you can't. The cameraman can't even keep up with him. And that's the truth. But I hope you all get to know him. Joe's going to add a few more things. Wish him luck this weekend. We wish you luck this weekend. And he'll be racing Friday night in New York City.
[SPEAKER_00]: As if that wasn't enough. So actually, I want to talk about something a little bit different. I am his coach, but I've actually known Tristan a little bit longer than being his coach. I actually had him as a student freshman year. So I'm here to talk about why Tristan, in my mind, has been and continues to be one of the model student-athletes here at our school. And I firmly believe and have believed for a long time that he is an absolute symbol that we have here as what it means to be a Mustang. So, as proof, and I joked about this, but I think this actually does deserve to be read out loud, this is an email to Mr. Nick Tucci sitting in the back, and this was my nomination for Tristan Howard as a student of the quarter, his freshman year, which he received and won. It talks a lot about him as a student, and from what I firmly believe, Tristan has stayed on this path ever since. So, hi Nick, this is the email. I said, I would like to nominate Tristan Howard as the next student of the month. Tristan has been a pleasure to have in my period six world history class, it's an honors class by the way, as well as an impressive leader on our indoor track and field team. Already throughout the season, he has shown many commendable qualities that a Mustang athlete should possess. He leads by example. He strives to overcome adversity. I probably added that because we make him run the relay at the end of our meets too. See, it's not enough that he wins his events, we also put him in other events because we need bodies and he's never said no to me ever. He manages his time between academics and athletics and a busy schedule outside of life. He's a social student and he works outside too. He's at the Capitol Theater in Arlington. So how he has the time to do these things and has continued to have the time to do these things is really impressive. and he remains humble all the while doing so. So I also added, I know this award is recognized for students who excel in the classroom, but I believe that a student like Tristan can be motivation for other students who may see themselves as an athlete or as a student and not someone who can achieve both. So I believe Tristan has achieved both. is continuing to achieve both and is something that we should absolutely recognize him as a student athlete of the highest order. So, thank you.
[Burke]: Yes, so Tristan, we have a certificate of appreciation that we'd like to bestow upon you. The Medford Public Schools is proud to recognize Tristan Howard for accomplishments in track and field on behalf of the entire school committee. We wish you great success and certainly you're doing it the Mustang way, right Mr. Tucci? Keep up the great work.
[Lynch]: and a great role model for everybody in our community. Even my younger children, I can read them. It gets other kids, it gets his teammates working and highly motivated. It's a lot of fun to be around and we appreciate all your hard work.
[Burke]: Very nice, thank you so much.
[Lynch]: And his brother was a state champion too. I'll give you one more thing. He has an older brother, Marcus, he's a shot put thrower. He probably outweighs him by about 80 pounds. He throws a shot put farther than his older brother. Very talented man.
[SPEAKER_00]: Tristan, do you want to show them what you're going to be running in this weekend? So as promised, he can't wear his Medford High School uniform because this is technically a private event. But he still wants to make it known that he's from Medford. So here's the uniform that he'll be running in.
[Burke]: Very nice.
[SPEAKER_00]: Designed by his older brother.
[Burke]: Wear it proudly.
[Lynch]: Thank you all very much.
[Burke]: Thank you. Thank you all. Great job. Item three, report on ethics bowl competition. Dr. Nicole Chiesa and Eric, I'm sorry, Eric Asner. Is Eric here?
[Chiesa]: Good evening, how are you? I am here tonight with Mr. Esner, who is a high school English teacher, and we're going to give you a brief description on the accomplishments that our Ethics Bowl team most recently had. So for those of you that aren't as familiar with the Ethics Bowl team, it is an after-school activity. It began through an initial partnership with the Tufts University Department of Philosophy and the Humanities Department. We began in 2013 under the leadership of Mr. Esner and have done very well over the years. The premise of an ethics team is designed to cultivate virtues that are central to democratic citizenship. So that's the focus. It's not so much debating as it is that analytical piece. On February 2nd, our team participated in the New England Regional High School Ethics Bowl competition that Tufts University hosted. And with Mr. Esner's guidance, they did very well. They outperformed schools such as Phillips Exeter, Phillips Andover, Lexington High School, and beyond. They were fantastic. Once they won that, they were able to participate on February 24th in the semifinal ethics bowl playoff competition. they were once again very successful in winning that competition. And based on this victory, they are now invited to the National Ethics Bowl, which is held at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in early April. We went one other time, so we're quite excited for this opportunity. I want to personally thank Mr. Esner for all of his hard work. He has come and gone above and beyond with working with the students. And I want to also acknowledge the students who are involved. Hopefully, after the national competition, we can invite them down to be recognized. But right now, it includes Maria Carmona, Joshua Kuno, Julia Gallabeck, Shane Ketty, Brendan Meager, Medha Menkerkar, Drexel Osborne, Katie Stephanie, and Jessica Tedito. And again, I want to thank Mr. Esner for all of his hard work.
[Burke]: Wonderful job. Great job. Also under suspension could someone move item three so we could also make the recommendation to approve the field trip for the Ethics Bowl competition. Motion to approve the field trip. Motion to approve by Mr. Benedetto. Is there a second? Ms. Vandekloot?
[DiBenedetto]: Yes.
[Burke]: Second by Ms. Vandekloot. All the roll call vote please.
[Mustone]: Member DiBenedetto. Member DiBenedetto. Yes. Member Kreatz. Yes. Member Mustone. Yes. Member Ruggiero. Yes. Member Ruseau. Yes. Member Van der Kloot. Yes. Mayor Burr.
[Burke]: Yes. Seven in the affirmative, zero in the negative. Motion passes. Congratulations. That's such an accomplishment. We're just so, so proud of you and the team. Great job.
[Van der Kloot]: I have a question about the funding. The last time when the students went to the Ethics Bowl, we were able, if I recall, to get a contributor to cover the costs of the student's trip. And so at this point, I would like to ask the mayor on behalf of the school committee if you could see if we could get a donor to cover the cost, as you've been successful in the past.
[Burke]: So moved.
[Chiesa]: I will make every attempt. Thank you very much. It would be much appreciated. Thank you for the approval as well.
[Burke]: We wish you great success. Thank you. Thank you. Also, while under suspension, item nine, report on Scholastic Writing Awards. Dr. Chiesa?
[Chiesa]: OK. Moving to the English department, putting the English hat on for a minute. I'm very excited to share with you the good news of our accomplishments with the Scholastic Writing Awards. Many of you are familiar with this. This year, there were over 2,600 applicants, and I'm pleased to announce that Medford had three Scholastic Writing Awards silver key recipients. We had one middle school winner. I told her tonight how proud I was. She's representing all the middle schools, so competition was fierce. and Medford still prevailed very nicely. This year, the School of Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University was partnering with Boston Globe, which is a difference from the past, but still the awards were offered to grades seven through 12. The categories, as you can see from the report, included dramatic script, poetry, memoir, critical essay, and there were specific rubrics to grade those, including the use of voice, originality, and such. Every winner will receive a certificate for the award, and the silver key recipients will be honored at Tufts University, which is very exciting, at a later date in March. We're really proud of them for their hard work. And I also want to thank the teachers who wanted to be here tonight, but I know they had a few other commitments. But Mr. Ambrose, Ms. Sanford, Mr. Bowen Flynn, Ms. Zeckman at the middle school played a very large role in that as well. So thank you to them. So I believe you have the certificates to honor.
[DiBenedetto]: Ms. DiBenedetto. Thank you. I was wondering if you could send us a copy of the winning essays and poems. We like to see those as well.
[Chiesa]: Also, I failed to mention that after we have the parents sign off a permission slip, and the student in case that the piece is personal to them, we like the sign offs from those, we also publish them on the English Department website. but I will try to email you as well your own copy of it. Okay? Thank you.
[Burke]: Thank you. Certificate of Achievement, Medford Public Schools is proud to recognize Isabelle Anglici for receiving the Scholastic Writing Award, Silver Key.
[Chiesa]: She couldn't make it tonight. Okay.
[Burke]: Laurel Baxter for receiving the Scholastic Writing Award, Silver Key. Danara Torres for receiving the Silver Key, Elastic Writing Award. Congratulations. Great job. Congratulations. Also, while we're under suspension, the Scholastic Art Awards. Mr. Szczynski.
[a7nti5izX0Y_SPEAKER_00]: Thanks. In conjunction with the Scholastic Awards, we had three Medford High School students receive Scholastic Art Awards in recognition of their superior work in various media. Each year the Scholastic Program introduces the greater Boston community to a new generation of young artistic talent. These awards, recognizing the important educational value of the arts, send a significant message to these young people. They acknowledge that the creative achievement in the visual arts and the ideas of our students are valued and celebrated. The visual arts are judged in 17 categories with specific requirements for each. Judges look for work that demonstrates originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision. And as Nicole mentioned, the regional awards are sponsored by the Boston Globe and the School of Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts. So we had three winners. Kylie Trong received two honorable mention awards for her photography. She's a senior, extremely talented young lady. Not only did she excel in art, she's in the high school orchestra, plays violin. She has done an incredible job working on the yearbook this year. When that comes out, I know everybody's gonna be impressed. And she's also on the swim team, which is where she is tonight. There's a swim team event. So, congratulations to her. Katherine Schmidt is here. And another very talented young lady, because she is not only a cellist in the high school orchestra, but she has great artistic skills, and she won a silver key in drawing and illustration. She's only a freshman, so gold key, I think, is in the future. And she will also be performing with the MMA Junior District Orchestra at the end of this month. So, again, another multi-talented person. And finally, Cairo Keenan, who's a junior, received a Gold Key Award for his digital art entitled Greenhouse, and that will be on display at Tufts University starting on March 16th, and is currently being judged with the other Gold Key regional awards in New York on the national level. And I'm not sure Cairo was here either, but Catherine is here. I'd also like to acknowledge, Catherine is a student of Ms. Van Aken, who is here tonight. And Cairo. And Cairo is a student of Ms. Nobrega, who is here tonight.
[Burke]: Wonderful. Yay.
[a7nti5izX0Y_SPEAKER_00]: Thank you.
[Burke]: Thank you. Would you like to take these, Mr. Zigney? For these other two? Thank you very much. Is there another recommendation? Yes. Motion for item 8?
[Patterson]: Yes.
[Burke]: Motion to take item 8 while we're in suspension.
[Patterson]: Second.
[Burke]: Recommendation to approve field trip, DECA vocational student trip to Boston.
[Fallon]: Good evening, Madam Superintendent, Superintendent Maurice, and committee. Thank you for having us. I'm really going to leave it up to our instructor and our student who are here tonight, but we are seeking approval. This will be our third year attending this event. This is for the DECA state competition. This will be the third year that we have students qualifying for the nationals, so we're very proud of that. We're seeking approval for the trip, which will be in Boston, staying over Thursday night. Again, we've done this in the past. Just so you have an idea, the total cost of the trip was just around $2,800. $600 was raised through fundraising events, and about $825 was contributed through students and their families towards payment of the hotel. So what I'd like to do is introduce Ms. Kristin Kuhlen, our senior student, Hunter Tognarelli. Ms. Kuhlen is our business tech and marketing education instructor. She's been part of DECA during all of her time here, but this year she took on the role as the advisor full-time. It should also be mentioned that Ms. Coolen took on both programs, both business tech and marketing, as our other instructor resigned last year. She's done an amazing job. Actually, we have the highest amount of freshmen this year who chose this program, so much so that we will be looking probably for another teacher next year or halfway through next year, depending on our numbers. Hunter Tognarelli is in grade 12. He's competing again. He is a student who's participating in our cooperative education program. And I think the two of them could give you a short explanation of this event. So I'm going to bring the two of these people up here now. Thank you.
[SPEAKER_06]: Good evening. This is my first school committee, so I'm a little nervous. DECA is a competition for business students. It includes role plays, written activities, presentations. This is our third year where we have international qualifiers in a row. That's quite an accomplishment. We have teams that have been doing this competition for decades. And there are hundreds of members. So for our little group of 10 to make it not only to states, but to internationals each year has made our whole program very proud of each other. We've worked very hard. So this year, in order to qualify for internationals, the students had to build a 35 to 40 page student-based enterprise report. It's an operations manual. They spent many hours, many 2 a.m. emails. So we submitted with the hopes of at least getting bronze, and we ended up getting gold rating on our work. So the students did an excellent job on that. We're ready to present at States this year. So they'll present on the market planning portion of the report. So, they're excited to be doing that. They'll be doing that on Friday. And this is more of a test run. So, the states are asking the SBE qualifiers to present and kind of get a little bit of practice in before the internationals. So, we're hoping. We're hoping to win one. We're hoping to win one. So Hunter's part of the team, not only did Hunter qualify for the SBE manual portion, but he also qualified making second place out of I think 25 competitors for his role play exercise as well. And another student who's participating, he not only worked tirelessly on the SBE manual, but he qualified as well. second place, I think, too, as well, in his role play activity. So we're having some great success, and I'd like to keep that going. And the program is being recognized a lot for DECA. The students are very, very engaged in this. And they're looking, they're, how do I want to say this? They're excited to join the business program because of the DECA competition. So we would definitely like to see us there every year.
[Burke]: Excellent.
[SPEAKER_06]: Great job. Thank you. So I'd like Hunter to say a few words on why he participates.
[dWFoLPiqEXg_SPEAKER_23]: uh hi i'm uh i'm hunting early uh sorry i'm kind of like dressed poorly don't worry it's struggling to get here but um great yeah so uh i've been doing deca since my sophomore year and uh like i love deca i'm just gonna say i i love doing deca um my sophomore year i made it to nationals and you guys helped pay for that as well so thank you for that Last year we all made it to states so that was an awesome experience and then this year we made it to states and we're making it to nationals and I think I've been saying this in class like every day it's like we're like the Patriots you know like we're like the Patriots like three straight years of going to nationals like that's unreal. We have like five or six people starting off, like my sophomore year we only had like four kids in DECA, and half of us made it to nationals. Last year we had like six kids go to states, one of them made it to nationals. Now this year we've, now we're not only getting like the vocational kids that are in the business program, but now we're also getting high school kids to do it, and so it's just, it's expanding so much more. Like I think we've probably gone up like 10 people just this year, and next year Miss Cullen doing an excellent job teaching, you know, she's getting another 20 kids to join the show. It's on me. Everyone wants to do it because everyone knows that if you want to have a good experience and you want to have something to talk about when you're growing up, when you go for a job, right? If you say, hey, you know what? I know how to present. I made it to nationals twice. I got to go to Orlando. I got to go to California. It looks really good for you. And it's also an amazing experience. How many high school kids can say, hey, I got to go to nationals for a business program. I got to do a presentation that I really care about. And we started this whole program last year, the actual SBE manual. We started it. It's Mustang Travels. It's about how we rent out cars faculty and staff throughout the school that gets to go on... Yeah, vans. Vans, minibuses, little smaller vans as well. And people can take it off for field trips and stuff like that. So I think it's really cool that like our hard work is kind of being appreciated. Yeah.
[Burke]: So what are your plans next year? Next year?
[dWFoLPiqEXg_SPEAKER_23]: I'm not sure yet. College is definitely on the horizon. I'm not sure where yet, though. Not sure where.
[Burke]: Well, I can imagine that the growth of DECA has something to do with you, too. Oh, thank you. Great job. You really present well. A very comfortable neighbor.
[DiBenedetto]: Mr. Benedetto. Thank you so much. I've had the privilege of spending some time with Hunter. I don't know if you remember. Of course. I was shopping at the store and I took a long time. I was posting pitches. I was trying on all different types of merchandise. Do you remember?
[dWFoLPiqEXg_SPEAKER_23]: Of course, of course.
[DiBenedetto]: I was there and it was so great. I encourage everybody in the community to buy some of the outfits that they have at the vocational school. I love them. I wear them every Saturday, everywhere I go. Especially the sweatpants with the little zip at the bottom. So comfy. It's like pajamas you can wear outside. In the half zip pullover that says Medford, in the red t-shirt, because we had to search for the right color. And the red one really pops. I wasn't sure at first. But I'm telling you, I spent a long, long time with Hunter and a wonderful teacher. I had a lot of fun. I learned a lot. And the program is expanding. I have great ideas. Your number on my bulletin board at home, so that way I can tell everybody where to go and how to get there. And thank you for all your service, and keep selling. Whatever you do, keep selling, because you- Your skills that you've learned here are going to carry you forward very well, and we're very proud of you.
[Burke]: Well, good luck Friday. I wish you the very best, as well as the other members that are accompanying you. And we need to approve this field trip. Motion for approval. Motion for approval. Ms. Van der Kloot, seconded by Ms. Kreatz. Roll call vote, please.
[Mustone]: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
[Burke]: Yes. Seven in the affirmative. Zero in the negative. Motion passes. Good luck. Keep us posted. I remember that Good night. Congratulations. Motion to take item 13 recommendation to approve donation for speech and language therapists to attend stuttering conference.
[Burke]: Motion on the floor to approve. Is there a second? Seconded by Ms. Kreatz. Ms. Vidaglio.
[q-Y9QUDQ70c_SPEAKER_08]: Yes, good evening everyone. I'm here tonight to request that the school committee accept a donation being made to the special education department by Ms. Elizabeth Gomez. She would like to donate funds to support the registration cost for up to three of Medford's speech and language therapists to attend a one day National Stuttering Association event. This event will take place on March 16th. At a cost of $59 per person, resulting in a potential donation of $177. Ms. Gomez is the parent of a child who stutters, and she is also a teacher here at Medford High School. She's a leader of the National Stuttering Association's Boston Family Chapter, in addition to everything that she does here for Medford High School foreign language department. Attendance at the National Stuttering Association event will provide participating speech and language therapists with an interactive presentation about therapy for school-aged children who stutter, including treatment of the motor, social, cognitive, and emotional aspects of the disorder. This generous donation is truly appreciated, as we know that educated participation and professional development can result in an increase in the collective knowledge of the entire team, which will result in better outcomes for all students. So because of the ethics requirements, we want to make sure that you understand that Ms. Gomez is a teacher here in Medford, and she's making a donation to other instructional staff.
[Burke]: Very good. There's already a motion on the floor, and it was seconded. Ms. DiBenedetto.
[DiBenedetto]: Can we send a letter of thanks to Ms. Gomez? She's an excellent teacher. She was actually one of my children's teachers years ago, and she does a great job for us. pay for learning for our staff members is greatly appreciated. Absolutely. I think that's a great idea.
[Burke]: Very good. On the motion roll call vote please. Yes.
[Burke]: On the vote of 7 in the affirmative, 0 in the negative, the motion passes along with sending out a thank you to Ms. Gomez.
[q-Y9QUDQ70c_SPEAKER_08]: Great, thank you very much.
[Burke]: Thank you, Ms. Vidaglio. Also, community participation, Ms. Mia Mastone? Yes. Okay, a motion to take community participation, Ms. Rodriguez, Medford Citywide Elementary PTO event, the Harlem Wizards game.
[Mustone]: Oh cute.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: Hi, I'm Cheryl Rodriguez. I'm a member of the Medford Citywide Elementary PTO, which if anyone doesn't know, is a collaboration of the Brooks, the Columbus, the McGlynn, and the Roberts Elementary Schools. We're proud to present our next community event and fundraiser. It's our own piece of March Madness right here in Medford and will feature a variety of fun interactive extras with the Wizards, the Highland Wizards. It's a group that's similar to the Globe Charters. And we're lucky enough to have them come here and play against our own Medford All-Stars, which is a collaboration of teachers, staff, and administrators from all of our elementary schools. So it should be a lot of fun. They're really excited to play. It's next Wednesday, March 13th, at our newly renovated Medford High School basketball gyms. This is everyone's chance to come up and see how that floor turned out. Doors open at 6. And the game starts at 7 and tickets are available at theharlemwizards.com or by contacting any of our elementary school PTOs. And I just wanted to take a moment to thank the people that have helped us. The Hyatt in Medford has provided lodging at no cost for our Wizards team, which is an incredible donation. Bill Blumenreich presents the Chevalier Theatre is sponsoring our team shirts. Wegmans has given us some money to buy concessions. Laurie Crane from Caldwell Banker has donated 20 tickets that will be given away to students at each of the elementary schools. Boston Physical Therapy and Wellness is going to provide training and help everyone stretch and hopefully not get injured during the game, but they'll be there on hand. And McLaughlin Masonry has also helped us out. have a t-shirt. We wanted to welcome our new superintendent and make you an honorary team member. Of course, the honorary is optional.
[Mustone]: If you'd like to come out and play with us, you definitely can.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: I would, if I, I might have that list, let me check. So I hope you'll come out, that t-shirt gets you in and you can be part of the team. She can coach.
[Mustone]: She coaches them on the regular, so they can coach them at the game. Thank you very much. For people out there who want to see their old teachers, who's in the lineup?
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: We actually have quite a lineup.
[Mustone]: It's a great lineup.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: Okay, so let's see. I'll start with the Roberts Elementary. We have Andy O'Brien, who's our Vice Principal. Hannah O'Brien is a K-Aid. Makayla Kelly is our Grade 4 teacher. Jim Garrity, Grade 4. Mr. Cormio is Grade 5. Diane DeMaio is one of our Connection teachers. We also have Angela. I'm not sure, I don't have her last name. She's a Connections teacher as well. The Brooks Elementary has Suzanne Galussi, the principal, Amanda Butera, grade 5, Jen Conti, grade 5, Mitzi Galante, grade 3, Abby Herman, grade 4, Columbus had a little shake-up, but this is the latest list that I have, so. Kathy Kay, principal. Nancy Sherman-Hudson, assistant principal. Jean Duskin, secretary. Karen Roberto, the nurse. Josh Gleona, the gym teacher. Jason Jinkwater, the ELL teacher. And Christina Tomino, TLP teacher. And the McGlynn, last but not least. Jennifer O'Brien, K teachers. We have three O'Briens. Amazing, right? Lindsey bellow grade one teacher Rocco Grover Sylvester II grade four teacher who used to be at the Brooks and at them the Roberts will come out and see him Christine hunt grade four teacher and Anthony Petrellis grade five We're just elementary this year mayor Burke, maybe we'll expand next year.
[Burke]: We'll try we'll try Thank you
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: And the tickets are 15. We also have higher T.O.s, 25 and 40. Those are going fast, actually. They're reserved on the court side. And they're available on the website or by contacting any of the elementary P.T.O.s.
[Burke]: Go to a great cause. Thank you. Is there a motion on the floor by Ms. Mustone to revert to the regular order of business? Is there a second? Second, Mr. Russo. All those in favor? All those opposed? We're on. Report of secretary. None?
[Mustone]: None.
[Burke]: Report of Committees. Committee of the Whole. Monday, February 11th. The function of the Medford School Committee document. Ms. Kreatz.
[Kreatz]: On Monday, February 11th, we had a meeting to discuss the final changes for the functions of the school committee. We made a couple of slight changes. One change was made to the first paragraph, another change was made to the last, I'm sorry, yeah, change was made to the first paragraph, and a change was made to the last sentence, number five. We finally came to an agreement, and we have the final version, which I have here tonight, and I'll circulate it to get signed. I will read the final draft, the function of the Medford School Committee. We, the members of the Medford School Committee, are committed to working together to provide the best opportunity for our children, their families, and the residents of Medford. To this end, we aim to meet the needs of all of our students and to nurture their achievement. While we understand that consensus can be elusive as we work together, we affirm the following principles. Deliberations of our committee are conducted in accordance with the open meeting law. When directed, one member may publicly report, but no one member of the school committee acts alone on our behalf. Committee members may issue public reports when appropriate based upon their role in the subcommittee. Our superintendent is responsible for operating our schools and for the daily implementation of our policies. Communication is facilitated and managed by our superintendent. As elected members of the school committee, we should always engage in civil discourse. We aspire to make our meetings informative and productive. We agree to discuss the issues on the agenda in accordance with the open meeting law. All members will honor the consensus of the committee. And this is it. We're done.
[Burke]: Thank you. Thank you very much, Ms. Kress, who led this, I believe, in subcommittee originally and then to committee of the whole. So thank you all for your hard work on setting the goals of the It's a motion to adopt the functions of the Medford School Committee. By Ms. Mustone, seconded by Ms. Kreatz.
[Kreatz]: Yes, second.
[Burke]: Roll call, please.
[Mustone]: Member DiBenedetto. Yes. Member Kreatz.
[Burke]: Yes.
[Mustone]: Member Mustone, yes. Member Ruggiero. Yes. Member Ruseau. Yes. Member Van de Kroot. Yes. Mayor Burke.
[Burke]: Yes. 7 in the affirmative, 0 in the negative. The motion passes. Thank you very much. Rules of Subcommittee. Monday, February 25th. Ms. Kreatz.
[Kreatz]: Yes, so we had another Rules Subcommittee on February 25th. The purpose of our meeting was to discuss the Medford Public Schools Responsible Use Policy. So what we did was we discussed what items in the policy that maybe needed additional professional development, and we also asked Molly Ladin, who is the director of technology, if the rules that are posted on the website are officially updated and they are up to date. We did ask to switch out, there's a URL and the URL says acceptable use policy. However, the document says responsible use. So we've asked for that update. We did, Mr. Russo asked if A blacklist could be imposed to block out social media networks. Superintendent Edouard-Vincent cautioned that social media sites like YouTube can be educational. The district uses social media, so it's difficult to prohibit. And we also do a lot of updates to notify our community about what's happening in the community. So we just need to use guidance versus restriction. Also, we just wanted to reiterate that Instagram is an account that should not be open for under, I'm sorry, I'm just tired, for account for 13 years under 13 years old. I'm sorry, I'm getting tired. And so, Ms. Ladin, she mentioned that each year the responsible use policy is discussed with the new staff at the beginning of school. The Children's Internet Protection Act says that social media is not banned. Ms. Ladin notes that there are no protections out there. We just need to educate and make whatever you're posting as private as you can. If you're under 13 years old, the students should not be using social media. One of the parents that attended, Ms. Todfeld, brought up some concerns about using Instagram for submitting homework assignments in middle school. This isn't safe because there is an explore button that cannot be turned off. Mr. Russo noted that Instagram can be accessed via the website or the app. It's open to the worldwide web, and that's why it's a little dangerous for that, you know, that group of students. Ms. Latin said that there must be an educational reason for, you know, teachers in classrooms to get the technology tool. All software must be approved by the technology department. Google Classrooms is a safe product. It's closed, and external emails are not allowed K to 8. Superintendent Dr. Vincent noted that technology and education go hand in hand. We need to remind the middle school's administration and teachers social media sites like Instagram are not legal for students under 13. Also, we must consider students' access. Some don't have computers or devices, so they can't access the material to submit their homework. Ms. Taubville would like to see more education for teachers and administrators. Social media is addictive by nature. We want to be smart, savvy, and wait a little longer to introduce students to social media. Ms. Caldwell noted that it's top priority to discuss with teachers and administrators at the upcoming meetings and provide additional professional development. Ms. Ladin informed us that everything in the building is monitored and archived. All emails can be recovered, Student logins begin at 6th grade. Mr. Russo asked if there's filtering to block sites, and there is. Yes, Ms. Lund responded yes. The meeting ended with just adding a responsible use of, oh, with adding the date, left that word out. Also, there's just going to be a review every two years and currently is up to date, so there's no updates that are necessary. And our meeting adjourned.
[Burke]: Thank you. Very good. This is a motion to accept this report and add the current date to the responsible use policy to show that it has been updated with no changes. Motion on the floor by Mr. Benedetto. Is there a second? Second. By Ms. Kreatz. All those in favor? Aye. All those opposed? Motion carries. Thank you. Item 1 under the report of superintendent is the superintendent's updates and comments. Madam Superintendent. You might be more comfortable.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Good evening everyone. So this afternoon, I had the pleasure to, we were welcomed to the Japanese Consul General's house, Japanese Consul General Michi's home for lunch today. We were invited due to our longstanding support of the Japanese Learning School. Mayor Burke, Associate Superintendent Diane Caldwell, and Assistant Superintendent of Finance Christine Patterson and myself had a wonderful nine course meal, Japanese lunch, and learned about the Japanese culture today. They could not have been more welcoming to all of us. So we were very appreciative of that opportunity. Things that are going on in Medford right now. As you are aware, our CCSR teams have expanded into all of our elementary and middle schools, as well as to the Curtis Tufts High School. I would like to highlight a few of the projects that have been done at the Roberts, McGlynn Middle, and the Brooks. Robert CCSR. The Robert CCSR club recently held a soup drive. They partnered with the Super Bowl of Caring to collect cans of soup for the friends of Francis Food Pantry. Student members created posters and a flyer to spread the word throughout the school community. CCSR collected 385 cans of soup. So congratulations to the Robert CCSR group. Brooke CCSR, Brooke School third graders and CCSR members, Georgia Scott and Addie Costello, aka Rebel Recyclers. began a new recycling program in the school's cafeteria. They are collectively, they are working on collecting stretchy number four plastics and delivering them to Whole Foods for processing. The program is a big hit with the students. McGlynn Middle School CCSR. The McGlynn Middle School CCSR hosted a food drive the week of February 11th, led by 8th graders Sejean Maguire, Glorine Vixama, Saica Correales, and 7th grader Elijah Buttello. After researching local food pantries, they chose to send their donations to the Somerville Homeless Coalition. This is a local organization that provides homeless and near homeless individuals and families in the Somerville and Boston area with support. So I just want to congratulate all of our CCSR members and the programs that they're working on to make Medford a better place. And in the end, make the world a better place. Also, in following up on that, Mayor Burke just signed into law the Plastic Bag Ban Ordinance that will go into effect this summer. The ordinance began as a CCSR proposal by Medford High School student Rubia Fernandez, Fernandez. So we just want to recognize that hard work and that Medford's now going to be banning plastic bags, which is important for our environment. Winter sports season. The Mustangs winter sports season has ended. Boys basketball and boys hockey both qualified for MIAA tournament play. Tristan Howard, which we recognized earlier today, he placed eighth in the 55 meters at the New England track championships held last weekend. He heads to New York to compete in the nationals this Friday. We wish him luck and congratulate him and all of our athletes that are so hardworking. Please note that spring sports tryouts will be starting on March 18th. Also, we would like to welcome our newly hired football coach to the Medford Public Schools, Mr. John Curley. When coach Jason Nascimento decided not to return as a Mustang football coach to spend more time with his growing family, we established a committee to seek his replacement. That committee completed thorough screenings of 20 applicants for the position. Six applicants were selected for the first interview round and three were selected for the second set of interviews with Headmaster DeLeva, Athletic Director Maloney, and Assistant Director Perry. As part of the final interview, each of the finalists were asked to present their five-year plan for Medford High School football program, and John Curley was selected. He brings with him many years of football coaching experience. He played football at Somerville High School and Nichols College. He has 12 years of football coaching experience at various levels, including Somerville Pop Warner, Arlington High School, Somerville High School, Stoneham High School, Shawsheen Technical High School, Nichols College, and the Charlestown Townies Semi-Professional Football Organization. He holds a bachelor's degree from Nichols College and is heads-up concussion certified, as well as CPR, AED, and first aid certified. I would like to extend a sincere thanks to Coach Nascimento for his 10 years of dedicated service to the football program. Thank you, Coach Nascimento, and welcome, Coach Curley. Speaking of concussion training, Medford High School Athletics is hosting a concussion training for all athletes and coaches on Tuesday, March 12th in the Caron Theater from 3 to 5 p.m. There is a flyer in the back of your packets. As we are all aware, concussions are no longer a simple bump on the head or bell ringers. It is our job to keep young athletes protected by better understanding the symptoms, treatment, and prevention of concussions. The Massachusetts Concussion Management Coalition, MCMC, will provide the training to learn more about the recognition, prevention, care, and management of sports-related concussions. So all are invited. The Medford Vocational Technical High School sophomore cosmetology students are learning wet styling, which is featured on the Massachusetts State Board of Cosmetology licensing exam. This timeless method of hairstyling is commonly used to create big and glamorous Hollywood hair. So the students put their new skills to work by paying tribute to the Academy Awards. The students were randomly assigned a celebrity hairstyle to recreate. In addition, combining academics with shop, they also wrote a short biography on their Academy Award winner. The graphics program produced the clapper board signs so students could record their projects for display. The display was in the cosmetology program room on a red carpet covered table with Academy Award trophies in between the students' work. The students recreated the hairstyles of Julia Roberts, Joan Crawford, Betty Davis, Reese Witherspoon, Catherine Hepburn, Louise Fletcher, Elizabeth Taylor, Emma Stone, Julie Andrews, Viola Davis, Ginger Rogers, Cher, Joanne Woodward, Jennifer Hudson, Vivian Lee, Meryl Streep, and Octavia Spencer. The students were very proud to show off their projects. And I went down to look at it. And they had the pictures and the mannequin heads. And they were really excited. And it was wonderful. And other students were coming down to look at the work that the students had done. So it was a great project. And I was really proud of their work. Also, vocational side news. I would like to announce that Ms. Alice Beth Fitzpatrick has been appointed interim assistant director, principal for the Medford Vocational Technical High School, replacing Jill Sawyer, who left the district for another position. Alice Beth has been a guidance Councilor for the Medford Public Schools for the past 12 years. She will be at our next meeting, presenting with Principal Fallon, We are excited to welcome her aboard onto the administrative team. Additionally, this is more vocational news. Last week, I actually used the services offered by our automotive shop. My car's tire sensor light had to be adjusted. I was driving and the sensor had come on and I said, you know what? And everyone said, go bring it over to the vocational shop. So I did. And they were able to inspect my car, change my inspection sticker, And in addition, repair the sensor damage that I wasn't aware of. I just could see it showing up on the car. So while I was there, I got to spend time with the students. And of course, the students at that time were asking me, why hadn't we had a snow day? They were, the pressure was on. But I want to say that when they did do the first check of my car, and they took care of the sticker, they did end up finding out that I also had a nail in my tire. And so I was really surprised and so pleased that here on the Medford High School campus, you can bring your car for service, have it served by students, and they found a nail and they repaired the nail the following day. And I just want the community to know, you know, Come to Medford Vocational High School. Get your inspection sticker done for your car, your brakes. Get nails taken out of your tires. They can fix sensors.
[SPEAKER_00]: Grab some lunch.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Yes. Come and eat in the bistro and have a wonderful meal. We have a lot that we are offering.
[SPEAKER_00]: Get your hair done.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Yes, you can. You can go to the Mustang Mall and go shopping.
[Unidentified]: Yes.
[Edouard-Vincent]: You know, I owe them a visit, so I'll say that. And I want to also just note that while I was in the automotive shop, I was pleased to see female students because normally it's traditionally a male pathway, or that's the way kind of society had set it up. So there were three students. And one of the students that I asked, Veronica, I said, well, what do you like doing on cars? And she said, I like brakes.
[Burke]: So she likes changing brakes. And I thought it was wonderful. I thought it was wonderful. Very good. Excellent.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Kindergarten registration. So our little ones are coming on board. Kindergarten registration officially started yesterday. at the Parent Information Center. So the forms can now be downloaded from our website. However, all registrations must be made in person. So the first of three Building Bridges to Kindergarten informational presentations will be held this Thursday, tomorrow evening at 7 p.m. in the library of Medford High School. Additionally, the If They Had Known presentation is being held on two different nights for parents. This is a 35-minute film that focuses on the risks of current party culture. It is not a film about addiction. It is a candid film spoken by kids, two kids, about the risks of recreationally mixing prescription drugs with alcohol. The film is an honest and emotional account of a real event. Parents of all schools are cordially invited to attend one of these presentations. The film will be followed by a question and answer session. It will be presented at the McGlynn Middle School tomorrow evening, Thursday, March 7th at 7 o'clock and next Thursday, March 14th at the Karen Theater at Medford High School. I would like to thank Tony Vento, our director of health services, and Rachel Perry, our assistant director of health education, for bringing this important topic of discussion to our district. So it's a great opportunity and I hope many families are able to take advantage of it. So both of our middle schools are now featuring lunch with the principals, and I just wanted to highlight that. Principal Downs hosts lunch each month with six students from each grade. These students are selected by their teachers and eat lunch with Mr. Downs in his conference room. Principal Downs believes it is a great way for him to learn more about his students. Likewise, Principal Nick Tucci also hosts lunch each month with students who are Mustang Way role models. Mr. Tucci selects a student a week, and at the end of the month, they all have lunch together. I love this idea because the principals are reaching their students in all different ways, and rewarding their examples of leadership, responsibility, and respect, which is truly the Mustang Way. A reminder again to save your dates, save the date, mark your calendars for Friday, April 5, 2019 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. That's our second annual Credit for Life Financial Literacy Fair, which will be held here in the gym. The fair is for the junior class. And this fair began last year with a $5,000 grant from State Treasurer Deb Goldberg's office. The State Treasurer just approved Medford High for a $2,500 grant for this year's event. I have heard from many people that last year's event was a great success, and I can't wait to witness it this year. The committee preparing the fair are Director of Curriculum, Dr. Bernadette Riccadeli, Assistant Principal, Gail Trainor, and Medford Vocational Teacher, Marketing Teacher, Kristen Kulin, who was just here. and our PR person, Lisa Evangelista, helping out with this event. This year, math teachers have added financial literacy to their curriculum so students are even better prepared for the fair. All of you are welcome to attend on April 5th, so please save that date.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: What time was it?
[Edouard-Vincent]: It's from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: Thank you. On a Friday.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Friday, April 5th, 2019. Lastly, on last Friday, the West Medford Community Center, it hosts First Friday Words in Music. And with March being Women's History Month, I was asked to attend and participate in a Facebook Live program. I was interviewed for about an hour about my childhood in Medford, my educational background, and how I came to love the world of education. I want to thank Mayor Burke and member Paulette Van der Kloot for attending last week. So those are my updates from Medford, and thank you for listening.
[Burke]: Thank you, Mayor Burke. Mr. Oshiro.
[Ruggiero]: I'd just like to know a little bit about the Massachusetts Coalition for the Management of Concussions.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Yes.
[Ruggiero]: Who's going to, is there a neurologist going to be presenting at that event? I don't have, I'm sorry. Oh, excuse me.
[Edouard-Vincent]: So I don't have who all of the presenters are going to be, but I can definitely get that information to you probably by tomorrow. Okay? But it is an informative event, and I'm not sure if they'll have neurologists, but it will definitely be informative for us to learn more about that.
[Burke]: Thank you very much. Thank you. There's no real reports out yet. Okay, item five. Ratification of Kids' Corner Memorandum of Agreement. We had an executive session two weeks ago. We had a motion for approval of the Kids' Corner Agreement and this is taking it to the floor to formally adopt it. Motion for approval by Ms. Van De Kloet, seconded by Mr. Benedetto. Roll call vote, please.
[Mustone]: Member Di Benedetto. Yes. Member Kreatz. Yes. Member Mustone. Yes. Member Rosero. Yes. Member Ruseau. Yes. Member Van De Kloet. Yes. Mayor Burke.
[Burke]: Yes. 7 in the affirmative, 0 in the negative. Motion passes. Ratification has occurred. Also item 6, ratification of Secretary's Memorandum of Agreement. This was the same thing. This was in our executive session of the last meeting.
[Mustone]: Motion of approval.
[Burke]: Motion for approval, Ms. Van De Kloet, seconded by Ms. Kreatz. Roll call.
[Mustone]: Member Di Benedetto. Yes.
[Burke]: Yes. 7 in the affirmative. 0 in the negative. Motion passes. Item 7, review of MSBA statement of interest for April filing deadline. Ms. Patterson.
[Patterson]: Good evening. So this is the same process that we went through last fiscal year. They open up the accelerated projects. the first of the year in January and this is for a core project which we are applying for the high school building here and this is the wording that we administration has reviewed again for its content and to ensure that we have equal chance to be accepted into the MSBA program. We do have a time constraint where we do need to have this document, the wording that it is provided here, as well as getting City Council approval upon your approval, if you so desire.
[Burke]: Ms. Patterson, if I could just ask one question from the Chair. On page two, you mentioned the Everett Agreement. Yes. And you project an increase in enrollment of 100. Do you believe that that is still accurate?
[Patterson]: That was our initial projection. We can certainly revise that before moving forward. Yes.
[Burke]: I think we should just reevaluate how that's looking and what you think the true numbers would be. Yes. And also based upon our lunch today that we had with the Japanese consulate as well as members of the Japanese learning school that use our facility on Saturday, we spoke about this process and they were very excited about it as well and they thought if there's anything we can add to incorporate what their school does here as well, that could really beef up our application, that we should consider that as well.
[Van der Kloot]: Mr. Russo? I just wanted to see, and maybe I've missed it, but I see the mention of an improved cafeteria, but what about the library?
[Patterson]: So library spaces are not part of what the core program looks at in terms of renovation improvements. They look at specific criteria, so that's why these are numbered and it's specific to the application itself. So we did not include the library just as focusing on the urgent needs for HVAC systems, a roof, other areas that are Outdated in the context of security measures, leaks, roofs, things of that nature. So that was not included as part of the original submittal. So we just were moving forward with what we had. If there was something specific for consideration, we can look to see if it may fit. But these are the core areas that are part of the application.
[Van der Kloot]: But under number seven, the cafeteria is part?
[Patterson]: In terms of enabling more students to be in the section at the same time, to be able to serve students in one area versus three, three different levels, that was the intent for this original submittal.
[Van der Kloot]: I guess I'm reflecting back a couple of years when we submitted but unfortunately were not chosen for renovation of the whole library area and that that's not a piece of either this or the funds we spoke about earlier this evening in subcommittee. I think that there were other Other parts, I don't recall them off of hand, but they were very detailed at the time. And so I was surprised not to see it as a piece of this. And I'd sort of like to look back at some of the plans at that time to see where we are, because not to even be considering it at this point would seem unfortunate. But in terms of what is acceptable, then I would make a motion for approval.
[DiBenedetto]: Do we have to make those changes and That can we mend it to make sure that this paper reflects the amount of students from a proper number Yes, we make that as an amendment to approval of this item also I would like to request an update on that fact. How many outside students we actually have coming in from different districts? Yeah, please.
[Burke]: On the motion that miss Patterson amend this filing to incorporate actual projections for the Everett partnership and motion for approval I Don't think we needed to come back to us. I think we agreed that if she meant the number we're good to go So motion for approval has been offered roll call vote, please Yes Yes Yes, on a vote of seven in the affirmative, zero in the negative, motion passes. And also, a B paper to this is to request a report that shows all of the outside enrollment at each of our schools. So that would include Curtis Tufts Vocational School. I believe those would be the only two, but if there are any others, please incorporate that as well. Very good.
[DiBenedetto]: Thank you.
[Burke]: Thank you. Recommendation for budget discussions to take place in personnel subcommittee. Dr. Maurice-Edouard Vincent. I think while you're walking to the microphone, because the budget of the school department is so heavily focused on personnel, we're going to rename that committee personnel budget for future moving forward.
[Edouard-Vincent]: So this proposal that you received is an attempt to truly increase transparency and provide opportunities for greater conversation at the subcommittee level. And you've received samples. So the attached documents represent a proposed timeline for the personnel budget subcommittee to hold working meetings for development of the 2020 budget. As you can see, a sample of the document format that would be used during the budget development is attached. And the format is intended to inform of the past year's budget. fiscal year 18 compared to the current year budget fiscal year 19, as well as expenditures year to date in a proposed column for fiscal year 20. So the proposed figures will be submitted by department heads, building principals and administrators that ultimately get presented to the subcommittee, and eventually the full budget process will be presented to you as a whole group. So approval of a schedule is recommended in order to plan and notify all involved who are preparing to submit documents.
[DiBenedetto]: First of all, I have no problem going for this to go to subcommittee because I happen to be on the subcommittee if I wasn't I Would want to be at all of these meetings because the budget is one of our main priorities as a school committee member We oversee the budget and we oversee the superintendent so I really feel like I'd support anybody who's not on this committee feeling necessary to attend these meetings. I do have a problem with the date of April 4th and possibly some other dates. So, other than the exact dates, if that could be changed, I'd like to hear from other committee members and make sure that the scheduled time frame works for them as well.
[Kreatz]: I also have a conflict with April 4th and I'm out of town on March 21st and one of the other dates is a school committee meeting night May 6 so if the meeting was 6 to 7 30 we would probably have to move the time up or have it at the at City Hall and have it earlier and finish directly before the school committee meeting, that could work. We could keep it that night. I'm not sure, but I'm happy to go to the meetings, and that's why I wanted to see if we can change the two dates and swap it out with another date.
[Burke]: So I think if there's a vote for it to happen this way, then I think that the committee should be working on dates that are reasonable for them. So that everyone can, I know Paula is the chair of that committee.
[Van der Kloot]: I am the chair.
[Burke]: You know, she will be in contact if it is voted on to go this route. She can certainly meet with the committee members to schedule.
[Kreatz]: Oh, okay. Cause I thought we were, cause I, it said that we were, approval of the schedules recommended to plan the meetings.
[Edouard-Vincent]: No meetings have been planned. So these aren't the dates? These are the proposed dates. So once we receive confirmation from the body, then we'll be able to reach out. to directors and principals, but the dates can be shifted. We can work with that, but it was the process.
[Van der Kloot]: Yes, Paulette? Mayor Burke? Just the one thing to keep in mind, the question is at some point we may not be able to accommodate every member's particular, as much as we want to. Ms. Patterson is available on Mondays and Thursdays. Um, so that, that's the first limitation that we have. Um, you know, the, to me, it's important, it, um, that as many members as can possibly make whatever subcommittee, uh, meeting, make them because, you know, we want our full representation. Um, the advantage of putting it in the subcommittee is that, uh, we won't need a quorum if we can't get it, um, you know, or it's a smaller quorum. But for me, personally, I believe that it's, um, important for every committee member who can possibly make these committee to please do so. Thank you.
[Ruseau]: Mayor Burke.
[Burke]: Mr. Russo.
[Ruseau]: My question is really one I wish Howard was here, our attorney, because I seem to remember that non-subcommittee members attending was perfectly legal. under open meeting law. But I seem to also remember the Attorney General's advice is that we should sit quietly and not be participants. If anybody in this room believes that any of us who are not on the subcommittee are not going to participate, I got a bridge to sell. I mean, like, it's not going to happen. So, I think it would be useful to at least get the advice of Howard to say, if we all show up and we all can't keep our mouths closed because that's not going to happen, We're not gonna get to vote on anything or deliberate but I Just want him to be saying this is okay Because I'm not gonna come to the meetings to sit and listen and hope that Paulette asks the right questions That seems really important to me
[Burke]: from Mr. Greenspan. Mr. Giro, next.
[Ruggiero]: Mayor Burke, thank you. I stand in opposition to this plan for many of the reasons that Member Ruseau mentioned. First off, I think that it's part of my fiduciary responsibility to the city of Medford to review these items in part of our working group. I feel like this can be done as in committee of the whole and I dislike the idea that If I attend these meetings, it will be simply informational. With all due respect to members that are on this committee, I'm sure they do a great job. But I think I owe it to the citizens of Medford to be able to speak on these matters. And I dislike the idea. While I understand that items that come to us, We would have the opportunity, it would come to us as an omnibus agreement. And yeah, I think that this is the wrong direction while I understand the attempt and the idea. I believe that all of us should be present at these meetings and it's very possible perhaps we could schedule these from 6 to 7.30 before Monday or other times.
[Van der Kloot]: Thank you. So, in and of itself, apart from the fact that I happen to be the head of the committee, I personally need, you need to understand, I'm also happening to have a committee of the whole. The only question becomes the scheduling, and the scheduling is tough. What if you say you can't do Thursdays or, you know, majority of the committee, I mean, are we How do we handle the scheduling? Already with these dates, people have said, I can't do that one, I can't do that one. So that becomes the difficult part, is just a pure nuts and bolts, how do we schedule? It's a lot of meetings.
[Ruggiero]: Yeah, while I completely understand your point.
[Burke]: Mr. Azzaro.
[Ruggiero]: I mean, it's part of my job. I mean, it's difficult for me to, it was difficult for me to attend today's committee of the whole, but I made it. It was, other members couldn't come in at exactly the right time. They were five or six minutes late. It's understandable. These are important matters, and I do believe that our entire meeting should deliberate.
[Burke]: Ms. Patterson, could you just elaborate, because I think this idea stemmed from the finance department on the purpose of these meetings, and what would they be taking the place of? Yes, thank you.
[Patterson]: So, this is actually a much more comprehensive, involved, and cohesive level of developing the budget. Previous budget preparation did not include a back and forth dialogue. It was presented by department heads at school committee level. I collected all of the data, put it into the budget document. We got our allocation from City Hall on what we could do. And we reviewed and spared back from there to get to the bottom line. So I think that this is a much more comprehensive, transparent process that really does involve the dialogue and have every opportunity for the committee members to weigh in on items so that these are actually the known budget developed based on the objectives and direction that the superintendent has identified with the goals that the committee has then approved and going into the new fiscal year. So this is really a mechanism to show where we've been, where we're at now, and where we plan to go. And so we are all on the same page of those goals, and we know that we are building a budget fiscally responsible to do that.
[Burke]: Ms. Stone first and then Mr. Russo.
[Mustone]: Thanks for sharing your proposal. I think Member DiBenedetto and Member Ruggiero said it well. We only have three roles, really. It's to set policy, oversee the budget, and to hire and supervise a superintendent. I think this needs to be discussed with all of us. I appreciate you trying to streamline it with three of the committee members, but we all need to be part of it. I appreciated last year during the meetings hearing from each department and hearing from the departments, but also hearing while I was at my children's schools what the teachers and the parents were seeing, and to be able to hear it and put it together in my mind of what the needs are. So I appreciate the proposal, but I do think we should stick with how we've done it in the past, that all seven of us are part of hearing from the departments.
[q-Y9QUDQ70c_SPEAKER_08]: May I work?
[Edouard-Vincent]: So I guess my question was going to be then what is the purpose of the subcommittee? Because we have seven subcommittees and in subcommittee the premise would be that the representative members that are there are given the authority to kind of think about the same way we've met with rules, we just met about the media technology, that was not the entire body. And all of the decisions that are being made will, in the end, impact the entire district. I feel like some of the conversations, even with the department heads, that this is just to kind of have it be a fairer process or the intention is to be more transparent with the budget personnel subcommittee so that when the actual budget, like our budget meetings are still going to happen, they're not going away, but when the actual budget meetings take place, that the subcommittee members would be able to speak more, in a more, I would say in greater detail, to some of, like the rationale, because I also am looking at it from the time perspective, that when you sit down and you have the budget, you can spend six hours, seven hours going through it and we meet in the evening. So just in terms of how sharp are we going to be, how much are we going to be able to authentically give that 110%. And I feel like in the subcommittee, with a group or if more people want to come, I'm willing to speak to Howard to get legal guidance on what can happen. But I just feel like by breaking it out this way, having having the department heads and the school leaders say, these are the proposed things that I want to be able to purchase, but to be able to have it in a greater dialogue and a more meaningful conversation so that when we get our official allocation, it doesn't seem like we're pitting one school against another or we're picking favorites, that I feel like it will end up bringing about greater participation from the entire school community, but also greater transparency about the process. Mr. Russo.
[Ruseau]: Yes, I want to be clear, I actually support this, even if I'm not allowed at these meetings, which is kind of crazy because I'm a details person and I have a thousand and one questions. And last year during our budget process, I had a thousand and one questions, all of which went unanswered because that was not a setting for that. My understanding also is that a finance subcommittee does this in virtually every other school committee in the state of Massachusetts. We are the weirdos here. We're the ones who think that Mr. Zigny standing up there and reading from a one-page document for 20 minutes in some meeting every year gives us any input on the budget. I want to know, so we have this many fine arts teachers at the high school. Questions I want to ask are hard questions. Well, how many should we have? How many are there at other schools? Let's get into that detail. Our regular school committee meetings would go to 3 a.m. if we got into the detail we need to get into, and I would give up the option of digging in, since I'm not on the subcommittee, which I'll want to be on next time around, over what I felt last year was the waving of the wand and saying, we knew what the budget was, because we got this monstrous thing printed. So what? That's the fine arts budget. What should it be? Those are the questions we're supposed to ask. And you can't go line by line through a gigantic document and interrogate the speaker who came with a presentation, a one-page presentation about the budget as to what's next year look like, what did last year look like. I mean, those meetings would go on forever. And I want to get into that level of detail. And I don't think the regular school committee meeting is the right place for that.
[Burke]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Ruggiero]: I think that there's a number of items I wish to address. The first was the question, well, what's this personnel subcommittee for? Well, in my opinion, a great use for it would be to decide if we want a badminton coach and a conversation about a team or a new team and how that individual personnel should be hired. The underlying premise that seven of us can't sit down together and have a thoughtful conversation about these topics is somewhat, for lack of a better word, almost offensive to me. I think we can do it. It's not like seven of us can't get into a room. A quorum of our subcommittee is four people, for God's sakes. If Kathy can't be there because of a family emergency, we'll survive. You know, this body will continue. But in terms of questions of collaboration and conversation, I'm excited that our new superintendent wants to create a more transparent process, and I support the motivation. And while I am very frustrated by this proposal, I understand where it comes from. However, I do not, we can all sit down in a committee of a whole or if we needed something less formalized, we could do something like a dialogue that we had earlier in the year where we can just sort of throw ideas on the board and see what sticks. That is within our purview. And I also do believe with respect to member Rousseau that we are not the weirdo in this case. I think actually using, a process where the community has an opportunity to see what's going on in front of a camera versus a subcommittee meeting which might not. I don't think that that fosters added senses of transparency for the community. So again, while I'm very frustrated by this proposal and I do believe it's the wrong direction, I understand the motivation, and I appreciate the idea that you want to create a more collaborative, a more transparent environment, but we have a forum to have collaborative conversations in a transparent environment, and this is it.
[Edouard-Vincent]: Are you making a motion? Cathy? No, Member Van der Kloot and Member Benedetto. Well, Cathy's going to cheer right now.
[DiBenedetto]: Okay. Kathy, Paula and I both want to speak.
[Van der Kloot]: I'll yield to my colleague.
[Kreatz]: I like the idea of this process tremendously.
[DiBenedetto]: I think that having the back and forth, the spirit of it is excellent. It can just be executed instead of the subcommittee, but just do it as a committee of the whole. Still do exactly what you're talking about with these dates or similar dates, you know, and just continue forward with this plan, but just increase the amount of members present. I think that the idea is excellent. I think having knowledge about this and having that back and forth is wonderful. And I'll appreciate having all that knowledge when we go to vote on this. But I do think that, as an elected official, we're elected to do those small things. And if I wasn't on this committee, I would be upset by not being on it.
[Van der Kloot]: Mayor Burke. Ms. Vanden Heuvel. So the first question I have is the first proposed date is March 14th.
[Burke]: I'm just wondering if I could well, I don't think we should even don't even worry about the dates right now I think it's the principle well for me, and I'm the pragmatist For me the question is saying hey the first date is March 14th who can make it do we have a subcommittee?
[Ruggiero]: I mean do we have a quorum for a committee if I'll go I mean look I mean The chair right now
[Van der Kloot]: I mean, so for me, I've got to be pragmatic at this. I understand that there's been thinking that it might be easier if it were a smaller group. At the same time, I listen to my colleagues, and I know that if I wasn't on the subcommittee, I'd be arguing the way that they were, and that's a problem for me. You know, part of me sort of says, hey, wait a second. We've got the first meeting. It's very nicely organized here. The first meeting is proposed for March 14th. I didn't hear other concerns about that particular date. Why don't we see how it goes as a committee of the whole? Let's try the committee of the whole. If it seems unwieldy after that date, we'll reconsider. But I can't, you know. I want to support you, but at the same time, I sort of feel like if I was not on the committee, I would be arguing just the way my colleagues who are opposed to it are.
[Burke]: Mr. Rousseau.
[Ruseau]: Obviously, I'm going to attend every one of these meetings, no matter what the dates are, because I prioritize the school committee above all other commitments. So I will be at any date that you put down. And that would have been the case even if I had to sit silently. I am fine with the Committee of the Whole if the scheduling is done in a rational way rather than reaching out to all seven of us. Can you do this date? I'm waiting for seven people to reply to a doodle poll and four days later nobody's replied or half of you have replied. We're not going to start these meetings until next year if we do scheduling like we schedule subcommittee meetings. So, I mean, I would vote for Committee of the Whole if Well, it would be the mayor, since she will say what the schedule is, and we'll make it, or we won't make it. And we're not going to argue about the dates. I mean, I'm fine with that.
[Kreatz]: I just had a suggestion. I know the dates when we have the committee of holes on Monday before the school committee meetings, we're all attending the school committee meeting, and we can usually all make those meetings. If we had it, it would just probably be from 6 to 7.
[Burke]: But we can't, in order to accomplish things we need to at least start that early or earlier.
[Van der Kloot]: So I didn't, if I may Mayor Burke, I didn't understand why the first meeting March 14th, which is a week from tomorrow, was you said maybe it won't work. Why wouldn't it work date-wise?
[Patterson]: I'm just, we've kind of, our timeline keeps moving, and I'm just thinking about the turnaround for the administration to respond for the input into their respective areas, but we can certainly push on that.
[Van der Kloot]: If I made a motion that we had a committee of the whole meeting next week to, on March 14th, to discuss the items listed, guidance, English language cards, social studies, that can't happen at this point? where you're uncertain.
[Burke]: Well, we have to review the schedules to see. March 14th may be good for you, but it may not be good for me. And as the chair, I'd probably want to schedule something that I could attend. When it comes to scheduling.
[Unidentified]: And the administrators probably for the.
[Burke]: And the administrators to prepare the document, I would imagine. It's going to take some time. So I think right now, we should probably just take a vote whether or not we want a subcommittee or a committee of the whole. And then we can just move on and try to schedule things. Motion to create a committee of the whole to have these proposed- There's a motion on the floor that a committee of the whole be held to conduct these pre-budget hearings.
[Ruggiero]: In the evening, if possible, at 6 o'clock, sometime around that.
[Burke]: It may be earlier than 6, though. It may have to be earlier than 6. That's fine. Of course. There's a motion. Seconded. We can't do it in an hour. Seconded by Mr. Benedetto.
[Mustone]: Roll call vote. Member DiBenedetto. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
[SPEAKER_07]: Yes.
[Mustone]: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
[Ruggiero]: I know. Sorry, Nicole. Wasn't she in earlier? I had her up at the podium.
[Burke]: Item 12, report new standards for social studies. Dr. Chiesa.
[Chiesa]: Hello again. Hello. Okay, I am asked here tonight to update you on the new history and social science curriculum. You may have heard bits and pieces about it and it is a significant change for my department that I want to make you aware of the work we've done thus far and the future steps that we will be encountering over the course of this school year and into next school year as well. The major changes that are impacting this framework and really our curriculum as a department, K-12, is obviously the new framework that DESE released, as well as Chapter 296 of the Acts of 2018. If we're looking at just the 2018 Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum framework, we see that there are significant changes to that framework compared to the older version. This was officially adopted in June 26, 2018, and there are several phases that are put in place before full implementation begins. So we have actually been working on this for not just this school year, but the prior school year as well, anticipating these changes. It's just that we did not have the final document until June 26 of this school year of 2018. The framework is guided with really two key goals, a significant emphasis on civic education and to deepen the understanding of history, civics, geography, and economics. There are six phases to implementation. Phase one was where they gathered recommendations for the vision and structure. Phase two was where there was a draft and review of the proposed revisions. Phase three was where DESE presented the draft and allowed for the public to comment, which I will add, and I will mention in a minute, our entire faculty had the opportunity to comment. We actually carved out time in the department meetings at the secondary level so that they could participate in this public survey last school year, which was very important because these changes are quite an impact on them. Phase four is where we are, and that is where they disseminated the new framework, and we are identifying support for implementation. As we move along in the phases in this future years, we are going to see a state history and social science assessment and administration. I will get into that a little bit more, but I will tell you that grade 8 is the grade that they are targeting to have a state assessment. And right now, they are piloting that in some extremely small pilot. I think it's like three neighboring districts at a PD that was held. So it's still very much in its infancy, but they are looking to do this at grade 8. We do not know yet. which grade it will be for the high school, but we do know it will be coming. And that decision is going to impact some of the curriculum decisions that I make with the support of the superintendent and the input of the teachers. Phase six is what I just said, actually, that's that history and social science assessment for the competency determination. I provide in the report an overview of Chapter 296 of the Acts of 2018. because that does affect our department as well. And it's a great, it's terrific. Each public school with a grade eight and every single public high school is now by law going to have to have at least one student-led non-partisan civics project that is consistent with the history and social science framework. There's going to be something called a Commonwealth Civics Challenge that is going to be made available to grade eight students. I had a department meeting today and we were already very excited with this. There'll be some civics projects trust funds that we'll look into for support with this. And there'll be a significant, we're very good in Medford in terms of having our youths involved in a number of different projects and a number of different options for them, but the law now is going to offer even more opportunities for the youth to become involved in a variety of municipal boards, committees, and commissions. So we'll see more of that, which is great. If I switch gears back to the actual framework, so I'm going to move away from the law for a minute and move back to the framework, I have provided for you in the report a list of structural changes. So the staff is getting used to the way we're seeing the framework. And it's huge. I won't go through them all, but we have the addition of guiding principles. We have standards for reading, writing, speaking, and listening that are drawn from the ELA framework, which is great for us as a humanities department because there's a clear overlap. but now they are right in there, ready to go. We have embedded skills in each thematic unit and supporting questions. In terms of content, which I would assume you may be even more interested in, is there is really an expanded history of diverse groups and people. So as we look at the different grade levels, we see an expansion from what was in the original framework. There are new research standards that our students are going to be expected to achieve across the grade levels. There are those enhanced literacy standards. There is a significant change in our grade six and seven sequencing. So what the sixth graders are taking now will change, and similarly with the seventh grade. And grade eight is really, the most impact is felt at grade eight, because it is moving away from what we currently offer, which is U.S. History I, and it's civics. So that grade eight is now going to be civics. which is awesome, great. It's just the transition, you know, we will, we will walk, we will get through it. But we are excited by that. Also, I want to mention that there is a movement. So, grade eight currently is offering U.S. History I. Now, the grades nine through 12 will have to offer World I, World II, which is what we offer in grades nine and 10, U.S. History I, which pulls from the grade eight, and U.S. history too. So we have been working very hard to phase out the sequencing for this to occur. So those are the content changes. And then if I may, I'd like to walk you through what we have currently done and what we plan to do as we move forward. So under the direction of myself, we have, and the superintendent and the associate superintendent, we have been working very actively over the past few years to prepare for the changes. We knew they were coming. staff has looked at them before they were officially adopted, staff has given input, whether it was positive or negative, and now we have the framework. This year, we are offering professional development for all teachers at the elementary level to receive an in-depth overview and analysis of the 2018 Massachusetts History and Social Science Framework. So by the end of the school year, every elementary school, led by myself and with the support of some lead teachers are going to have the opportunity to attend the PD to really understand the changes, which is important because at the elementary level they are dealing with numerous subject areas. So we're happy to have that opportunity to really present it. And then, of course, work more with it. At the secondary level, every single one of our department meetings has been devoted at least in some way to really understanding the framework, mapping it out, looking through it, and going on. We have looked at creating essential questions at each grade level to align with our district curriculum. We have engaged in strategic planning for these significant changes that I've mentioned. We just had a department meeting today where we were once again engaged in looking at this. And on our professional development day on March 12th, I will be able to work with the social studies teachers to delve even more deeply into this. And in addition, we are going to have the Department of Secondary Education Humanities Framework Revision lead Michelle Ryan, she's going to teleconference in with us for a portion of that PD day so that we can ask some burning questions, questions that all the districts have. We've also been in close contact with the other districts as we move forward to see where they're going as well, since it's such an impact. Down the line, you will see a brand new current social studies district curriculum. We will be formulating curriculum committees to make this transition methodical and thoughtful and purposeful. And we will be making some decisions on that scope and sequence with the support of the superintendent and our associate superintendent as well. We'll be revising the elementary standards-based report cards, reviewing and applying for any grants that might be available to support these changes, selecting and piloting materials, particularly at that grade 8 level, but also at really the 6th and 7th, and certainly implementing that Commonwealth Civics Challenge, which I'm sure you'll all hear. more about as we move forward. And so we've been quite busy, and we are very clearly in control of a plan for what is really a huge impact. We have not had a new framework in decades for social studies. So it's exciting, but it's new. So having done the ELA framework and gone through those revisions back in 2011, We're taking that same process of being methodical and thoughtful and collaborative as we move forward. I'm happy to answer any questions.
[Burke]: Thank you. Any questions? Mr. Giro?
[Ruggiero]: So I'm interested in your mentioning about the assessment that's going to be at the graduation. So is this an assessment similar to the MCAS? Is that going to be the design paradigm?
[Chiesa]: Yes. It's going to be an MCAS design. Again, it's in pilot form. They have not decided what grade at the elementary, if at all, and what grade at the high school. They have been pretty clear. I think it will be three actually, elementary, secondary, and high school. Similar to science, where they do elementary, secondary, and high school, or middle school and high school. What we do, there's a lot of unanswered questions that DESE can't answer, and I've been in close contact with them. But what we do know is out of elementary, middle, and high, we know grade eight is going to be one of those MCAS scores. Which in my opinion is a little bit unfortunate given that that year they also have science. English, math, that grade's going to have four. So I'll be curious to see where the state falls. But where there's such an emphasis on civics, I have a feeling the MCAS will stay for that.
[Ruggiero]: I also assume new educational materials will have to be purchased.
[Chiesa]: For grade eight, we really are going, yes. I'm going to say yes. Yes. More budget.
[Ruggiero]: Has the state offered any financial support?
[Chiesa]: Not yet, but as one of the points in this report is looking at grants to support some of those materials. One thing I've learned having implemented that immense ELA framework changes, we don't want to be too quick. in selecting materials, because right now I have a lot of people coming at me and saying, this is it, this is it, this is the best thing. No, we're going to be, again, methodical. We have criteria that we look at before we make any decisions. So there's a lot coming out, but we won't see. Of course, during budget, I am anticipating some of these needs popping up, but certainly we're gonna look for other areas that support through various grants and whatnot.
[Ruggiero]: One last question.
[Chiesa]: Sure.
[Ruggiero]: Thank you so much. Have DESE published the core curriculum, the actual topics that will be tested on this exam, like the different modalities?
[Chiesa]: No, they just have told us, and they just told us at the most recent PD that it was grade eight, and it was news to everybody. I think they have a lot of unanswered questions as well. And we'll move slowly with them. Thank you so much. But very carefully. Please keep us up to date. I will. I will. It's exciting, but it's an impact. Well, I told my staff today, I said, we're not going to be overwhelmed by this. We're going to take this step by step. And we're looking at, really, the framework is beautifully written. That focus on civics is something I think we've all wanted for years. I know I have. So it's a good thing, it's just there are certainly changes and we have it under control. Thank you.
[Burke]: Is there a motion to receive this report and place it on file by Ms. Mastone? Seconded by Mr. Ruggiero. All those in favor?
[Chiesa]: Aye. All those opposed? Motion passes. Thank you. Thank you very much.
[Burke]: Thank you Mayor Burke. We do have a couple more items. I have an undersuspension. Under new business, under suspension, school committee resolution, be it resolved that the Medford School Committee express its sincere condolences to the family of Rosemary Texera. Rosemary was the mother of Paul Texera, director of English Learners and Title III for the Medford Public Schools. Also, be it resolved that the Medford School Committee express its sincere condolences to the family of firefighter Steven Pena. He was a 43-year veteran of the Medford Fire Department. And he passed away last week, and he leaves behind his wife, Sydney Lynn Pena, and two daughters, Jasmine and Chloe, students in the Medford Public Schools. So if we could all please rise for a moment of silence. Thank you. Mr. Benedetto. Thank you.
[DiBenedetto]: We received a report on the Manfred High School Student Activity Account. Could we add this to the next agenda just so I could ask a few questions to it?
[Burke]: Certainly.
[DiBenedetto]: Thank you.
[Burke]: And seeing and hearing none, there's no executive session. Mr. Greenspan could not be in attendance, so that will be on the next agenda for our next meeting. Motion to adjourn. Yes. Thank you.
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