[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, my name is Kathy Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I live at 391 Fulton Street, Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I can't be there tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had something going on here at the house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, so I just wanted to, you know, kind
[Kathy Kreatz]: to set something clear is, you know, the first time as a school committee member that I heard about this raise was by reading it on the city council agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This was not something that the school committee discussed or even received any communications from the city council on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were, you know, in my own personal opinion,
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're not even thinking about a raise.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This wasn't even something we were discussing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In eight years that I've been on school committee, at one point, there was a raise discussed years ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This was before COVID.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we declined, voted it down, because we wanted to make sure that if there was any additional funds, it went to the school budget, to the teachers, to the students, and the needs of the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if there's any additional money, which there isn't, it should go directly to the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It should go to the needs of the students and the teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I've heard from, you know, a lot of the members that have spoken tonight and the community has come out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I totally agree that if there's extra money, this extra money for salaries should go to the parents to raise their salaries, not the school committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Our job is a volunteer job, and I've been doing it for eight years, not expecting any pay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It requires dedication, love, commitment, just being there to hear and understand and listen to the needs of everybody in the community, the teachers, the students, the families, caregivers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not about the salary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was confused about the resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where did they come from?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Who did they speak to?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was really confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to set it clear that the school committee did not have any meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were not talking about raising our salary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm talking from my own personal opinion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nobody's reached out to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was not a thought in my mind.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was surprised and confused and disheartened by the resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just something that we're not expecting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did hear, I got into the meeting late, but I did hear
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rick Caraviello, Councilor Caraviello mentioned that a pay cut in their salaries to make the salaries equal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I think that would be the best way to make the salaries equal across the two different, you know, boards between the school committee and the city council.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there's going to be any changes, then maybe a decrease in the salary to bring the councilor salary back down to the school committee salary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so I got my point across and I wasn't prepared and ready to speak, but I just hope that I made it clear that I object to this resolution and I hope and I pray that it does not pass tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you for your time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, can you hear me?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wait, I have a glare in my background.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me just try to shut a shade.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's like really it's like the light is coming towards me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hold on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me go shut that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm in a different location.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have my usual spot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I'm in another meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I have one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I just had a quick question, um, about tardiness, like, um, and.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, if a bus is late, will the student be mock tardy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: How could you explain that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, no, I mean, I- I'm kidding, you won't be here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, we did have another year where we had two, where Aaron DiBenedetto and Michael Ruggiero were no longer,
[Kathy Kreatz]: members and the mayor was new to the city and we did have a training with Dorothy presser.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know it was in December, and it wasn't, I mean, I don't know if it was called a retreat, but it was about a three hour training seminar for the new school committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was actually informational and helpful even for myself, because it was a reminder of who to contact for questions, just different things like,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, going into executive session that's private, public meetings, don't share emails, you know, things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, she covered a wide, broad of topics, and there were two new school committee members at that meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't, you know, I just, I know the two members that were leaving, and, you know, I just don't remember who was coming on, but, so we've done it before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Jenny and Paul, or Jen, oh, and Mel, okay, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the mayor was at that meeting as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just remember, because I had to get out of work early, it's one of those things that I just remember.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was before Christmas, actually, because I was still doing my Christmas shopping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it was like, right, it was the last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School was still in session, maybe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it was.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because, yeah, it was school was, it was the last day of school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was a half a day, we started at noon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I remember Hays, then member McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to thank the subcommittee for all the hard work on putting this together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know how much time you spent on it, and I appreciate I had many text messages going back and forth to Sharon, because I was working with a different browser, so I understand, and I figured out a way to, like, cut, I guess, copy and paste my comments in and then print it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't, you know, I couldn't save it, but that I figured it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was like, okay, let me do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I brought it in here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know she was there for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I sent her many, many messages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Sharon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you all for all your hard work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know how many meetings you had and appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think this time around, it was much smoother and I think it went very well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was, we all got to participate and, you know, it was
[Kathy Kreatz]: the instructions you did were excellent and easy to follow.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I thought it was great that you were substituting in the classrooms when you just mentioned that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I thought it was interesting because going over the history of the high school and the vocational school, I've been on the robotics engineering advisory committee, and I've heard, and my son has told me, for many, many years, there's been discussions about
[Kathy Kreatz]: the two schedules, how the five day and the six day, and it's such a challenge.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've heard from students that were in my advisory committee that it's so frustrating.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some students couldn't take a foreign language.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know my son didn't take a foreign language because the schedules were too restricted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There wasn't enough room in their schedules.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's interesting that you discovered this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it is something that is contractual that, you know, we're working on or that's going to be worked on, you know, as another task coming up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, it's going to be, you know, I think challenging, but I think at the end result, it will, you know, open up the schedule so that there'll be more opportunities for students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just wondering if you had the opportunity to talk to any of the students, you know, did they share any of their experiences or,
[Kathy Kreatz]: anything with you, if you could share some of that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's nice to see the enrollment numbers increase.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can just remember doing promoting and commercials for the vocational programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we have the excellent open houses.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's really great when
[Kathy Kreatz]: We do have the open houses and everybody can come out and see in going to the various shops and explore and it's a really nice event that we put on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: that's that's all graded here too and and then I I know, Miss Graham had talked about the associate principal position and.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did receive some emails from parents, just mentioning that they felt as though we needed to have, there wasn't a particular name, but another assistant principal, because they felt as though there wasn't enough supports at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was just something that was brought up recently.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had put it in,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the budget survey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I thought that was interesting that there was a position that was a recommendation for the associate principal in it would that be one position or would that be because it does say this, the associate principal role would be a full-time role.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it would be one new position.
[Kathy Kreatz]: with the other four assistant principals?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you very much and thank you to the students for all your help and it's it's really it's a it's dramatic improvement from the other website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I downloaded the app last night and
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm very lazy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't like to turn my computer on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I always want to use an app.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was really happy to see that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will we be able to see all the same information on the app?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know you're still in the process of building it and getting it ready.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at one point, will you have to, can you use the app for everything or will you have to still go on the website onto a computer?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will they have the same exact information, the app and the actual computer or desktop?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz, then Member Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I, you know, I just jotted down a few goals and a lot of them are similar to what some of my colleagues have talked about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, one of the goals that I thought was important, which we are working on is, you know, improving the superintendent rating process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just met about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think that could be one of our goals.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's something that we could,
[Kathy Kreatz]: accomplished like within the next six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking that might be, you know, one of the goals that we could do, cause we are working towards that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is something that smart goal it's attainable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We could do it within the six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, another, um, piece would be the communication, which is also being addressed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's on everybody's minds and it's on everybody's goal list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it's being addressed with the superintendent, you know, improving the communication as part of that,
[Kathy Kreatz]: would be something that we did make a motion about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if it's something we could accomplish, would be looking into improving the internet service at Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We already have a motion in for this, but it's something that's important to all of us during the communication process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know for sure if it's obtainable within six months, but it's something that, you know, we made a motion, we're looking into it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, there's no promises, but we are looking into it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and then along with that would be like improving the climate at Medford high school, which is also being worked on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just something that's on everybody's minds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But, um, at the same time, you know, considering all the schools, K to 12, not just Medford high school, but all the schools,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, cause I know we, in some of the messages we got, um, you know, some questions were, Oh, is this going to be done for all the schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, that's something that, you know, could be done maybe not within the six months, but you know, within the year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and, and then my question would be for tonight is, you know, are we, are we making a decision on how many goals, like whether it's going to be one, two, three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think if I was to look at the superintendent's goals, you know, she has the three, you know, high level goals and then the actions that fall underneath.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was, you know, I just, I wasn't sure exactly what we were doing at tonight's meeting, but thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had just chosen one, but I had chosen data-informed decision-making, but the instruction makes perfect sense.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had A also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had A and I also had, because I felt like we do the budget, I had fiscal systems develops a budget that supports the district's vision, but I don't know if that's gonna come in another section or if it's just not really part of the evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I definitely think managing conflict, definite on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's tough with the A and the B, like, I think I would choose A over B. It's tough because then we're going to get into too many indicators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But they're both important.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very, it's very tricky to narrow it down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what does the superintendent think so far of, um, of what we've, um, so far approved?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to use those words, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, the words are exemplary for standard, sorry Democrats, we don't get to decide the words directly in the required just to clarify what they were I thought you wanted to know what they were as part of the motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just was clarifying what the motion was, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was gonna read it out in full if you want me to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I agree.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just think that it's a complicated process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And having this special, or the subcommittee, I think would be necessary each year, unless it's determined it's not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Sharon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question because I know I've always been concerned with, you know, when your high school student got to take the exam,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if that percentage that student doesn't fall within the range, you know, that they need to be eligible to get the high school diploma.
[Kathy Kreatz]: that can be very stressful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I know it's really early on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as part of the process, is there gonna be any planning to assist those students who didn't, are they gonna have to retake it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will there be some assistance?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes, I want to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And last year I got to
[Kathy Kreatz]: go to the live open house and see some of the updated programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They look fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know if you would briefly be able to describe what the mass core framework is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I got it described in an email and I just thought it was very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if you were able to share it, if you could do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So mass core?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do you know when the fall advisory meeting is going to be?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, is there going to be, like, in the fall advisory meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one last thing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When my son was at the vocational as a student,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, there was some limitations with the scheduling, um, with extracurriculars in world language.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just wondering, um, if, if that's going to be something that might be worked on into the schedules where, um, those opportunities might be more available for the students, for the CTE students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we can get a new master schedule, that's the goal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what I know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had received some information in an email, but I just wanted to kind of just put that out there that that's something that I believe the district, the administration's working on to try and
[Kathy Kreatz]: get the schedule and get that in there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had a similar question that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham had, was how do interested community members
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, find out about opportunities and you've already answered it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm all set.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was easy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to accept the revisions from Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin for the superintendent's evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I was going to say the same thing that I didn't have any revisions to my end.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo, before he went on vacation, he already updated my comments and the mayor's comments and shared it with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything else was fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do think this year it was a little bit different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that we're not allowed to see each other's evaluations, but this time we weren't given the opportunity to even see our own evaluations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the final version so I think you know maybe in the future if we can be shared okay this is what I have for your evaluation can you review it and let me know if it's okay whoever's doing it or everything could be sent in maybe to the superintendent secretary and she could review it you know everybody's individually so that we're not looking at them so that there's another set of eyes on them because I was reading some of the instructions and
[Kathy Kreatz]: When you look at the instructions for one, two, three, and four, in order for somebody to get a one or a two or a three, something has to be, so to speak, like broken in the prior evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking there has to be a cross-examination between the prior evaluation and the current evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for individual evaluations to ensure that the numbers are recorded correctly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very complicated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I find the whole process to be very complicated and confusing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really wish it was easier.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I don't like the current process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that Mr. Russo said some of us didn't follow the instructions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I tried my best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a confusing form, so I just did it myself on Excel and sent it in that way because I didn't like the Google Sheets, the way that I don't like how they're filled in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I did it the alternative way and sent it in that way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but I'm just sharing my thoughts, but I don't have any changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just, I thought the meeting was just to hear the, receive the updates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then once Mr. Russo gets back, the averages can be redone and then it can be sent off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I motion with the reward, the way it was rewarded by the mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'll make a macro statement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanna thank Dr. Edward-Vincent for her leadership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She supports all students, teachers, reading her goals and evaluation that her pre-evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's been to school events, community events, many, many meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's, you know, she provides the, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the weekly bulletin update every week, sharing the news, and, you know, just piggyback on what the mayor said and what Melanie said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's, you know, she spends all of her time dedicated to the Medford Public Schools, the needs of the students, the community, the families,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's responsive to the school committee members and our requests and our needs and at all hours of the day and she just she works tirelessly and so I just wanted to, you know, share that and I've, you know, was on the.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was on the superintendent search as well, you know, as a school committee member, and we, you know, got to meet superintendent Dr. Robinson at that time and just got to know her very, very well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's like we're a close family, everybody, the committee, the administration, the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank her for her dedication and her leadership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maintaining a learning environment built upon the pillars of safety, equity, and consistency.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The score was 3.77.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There has been some progress and we have much work to do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Equity is perhaps our biggest need to address.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Creating a strategic plan or goal around just this issue would be helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Defining equity would be a good start.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can take standard two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so I'll start on standard two, management and operations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The score was 3.15.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There is feedback under several of the sections under standard two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll read the feedback for standard two, and then I'll, you know, continue on with the score for each other.
[Kathy Kreatz]: subset and read the comments for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So standard two management operations 3.15.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The changes to the budget this year were effective and efficient.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The committee was able to get a comprehensive view of the priorities and discuss in a positive and productive manner.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The state of the district system is poor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: By systems, I'm referring to processes, technology, and people that comprise the foundation and infrastructure on which the district runs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There needs to be people
[Kathy Kreatz]: There needs to be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry I'm just missing my spot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There needs to be considerable focus, moving forward and prioritize a well run set of administrative functions without improvements on the administrative side of the house, the districts continued improvement in curriculum,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and instruction will be limited compliance with school committee policy is low.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in the case of out of out of school suspension policy inadequate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The committee proactively provided an extensive amount of planning time as the administration to come back to us with any changes that they felt would be needed to operate operationalize the policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and to articulate what financial supports are needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: None of this occurred.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Students appear to be regularly suspended this year, which is complete conflict with the policy set forward by the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As another example, the committee also adopted policy that outlines regular reports, and went throughout the school year, we expect to receive them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There has been no acknowledgement of or accounting for those reports this academic year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 2.1 environment the score was 2.97.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We are beginning to evaluate operational systems in a district that has long been without.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The next one was 2.2 2.2 human resources management and development score was 3.24 a standard report of other school committee committees receives is the personnel report continuing hires termination leaves of absence workers conversation and other positions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This report is invaluable for understanding the state of the organization.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This report is received monthly, or more often other districts, while it is understood that due to disconnected software systems.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This report cannot be generated without substantial work effort.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's we have not pressed for this report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There does not seem to be a plan to replace this disconnect software system, so that the administration can begin providing this critical report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This report is more than nice to have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is considered mandatory and members of other school committees are shocked we don't get this report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Identifying a path forward to replace the software systems or connect them or merely to fund some kind of a project to make these reports easily generated is something we would like to see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this is critical report can be generated and supplied to the committee is something we hope we can start in the coming year or two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then we have 2.3 scheduling and management information systems.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The score was 2.84.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are still multiple calendars throughout the member public school system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: These multiple calendaring systems, which do not speak to each other result in predictable failures, such as double booking of spaces.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This issue has risen to the forefront numerous times.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The committee has made clear our desire for a single calendaring system, or at least some of the operationalized method to ensure the problems of the multiple sources of truth is resolved and to improve transparency about who was using our space
[Kathy Kreatz]: and for non-NPS affiliated groups, what they are paying for the space.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And law ethics, 2.4, law ethics and policies, the score was 3.11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 2.5 fiscal systems, the score was 3.56.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the overall score overall was 3.15 for standard two management and operations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a quick question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to just give some examples of the one-time funding sources, what that would be like, and the revolving funding sources, just in case the public doesn't know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I motion to
[Kathy Kreatz]: look into the budget for the cost of the $720 for the school year coming up for the compost buckets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I had a similar question about category E, which you answered the questions regarding the personnel.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did have another question on, because I had written down, and you were going pretty quickly on this, so I had written down that
[Kathy Kreatz]: Highest priority was category A. B was recommends ESSER.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe I wrote that down wrong.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then C was definitely ESSER.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think I need some clarification on in regards to category B, where that is part of Mr. Russo's motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is category B, is that
[Kathy Kreatz]: a recommended ESSER or that's not, I get a little confused between the highest priority ESSER, the high priority ESSER, like why is C nodding?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like why are we counting on ESSER for all of the C priority needs and not for the category B?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I'm just getting confused about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, that was helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I just wanted to also note last week I did reach out to state rep Donato and he did tell me that the House of Representatives did vote to approve $110 million in their budget for free lunch for all students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's gone over to the Senate and then in likelihood like the Senate and the governor will approve hopefully.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, really hoping that happens but I do agree with the language and Mr. Russo's
[Kathy Kreatz]: motion that we would then submit supplemental fund, you know, for a request for supplemental funds, if that wasn't to pass, but I'm, I'm really hopeful that that it will pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I just wanted to comment also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to say, I went to the open house and I Sharon was there as well and it was so wonderful to see all the programs and it's just, it was phenomenal and I got to see some of the new skills capital equipment, you know firsthand, and it's just really amazing and all the great things and.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, the students were there and they were showing some projects and it's just so wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I'm so happy to hear about the, you know, the increase in the enrollment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it's just, it's wonderful and it's a great opportunity for everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to thank you for your speech and for the presentation and also I wanted to mention and say thank you to all the teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Attorney.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just reading through some emails we got earlier this year about the absenteeism letters that go out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I do agree with some of the concerns and the letters that were mailed out is
[Kathy Kreatz]: that we do have the COVID protocols in place where if students are symptomatic, they're close contact, they should remain home and quarantine for the five days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So where the letters are sent out if the students are absent five days, that might be five COVID days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So COVID is new and we haven't updated these letters.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I do think we need to do some sort of an update or addendum to the required letters by law that we have to send out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to share that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm a member of Laughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like, who?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, this has been all very, very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate all the information that we've received today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't see any hands raised but I remember yes, um, I wanted to make a motion for the superintendent to submit to the MSBA the statement statement of interest application form on behalf of our flagship school Mefford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to say I'm really proud of our whole group for putting together the policy rules, and that was a big accomplishment for everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: school committee members and the administrative staff.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm hoping that things will, you know, the meetings will be more efficient and run smoother.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just, I'm grateful to everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Democrats, yes, I had a similar question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just went to the website and where are those meetings on the website, I must have missed a communication in the there's a budget tab under the about button.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just curious, we are, like, I'm sorry, we are on the, like, so if I'm on the Medford Public Schools main page.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one quick question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are we voting to accept the whole rule policy or to vote on the motion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, as amended with that one amendment to 88.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to say no, because I'm not happy with that amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I guess I'm a no, because I'm voting on the whole policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Krex?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to point out that the next meeting, I believe, would be starting at 6 p.m.?
[Kathy Kreatz]: 6 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I just wanted to put you on the call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just voted on the rules, thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Mayor, I checked in with Mr. Russo the other week and we stopped at number 67.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I need to go back because I think we moved too quickly in the first meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have to bring something up about number 51 that I didn't get a chance to mention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to just kind of go back to just review number 51 again, because I had notes and I never got a chance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I noted that I didn't get a chance to mention anything on number 51.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I originally in the prior meeting, I had notes listed here that it says, you know, regular meetings will begin at 630.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We made that adjustment in the last meeting to correct it from another time that it had said no meetings at school
[Kathy Kreatz]: committee will go beyond.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It says 11 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have concerns about that for everybody who is in the school committee meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The administrators, the students, the teachers, just everybody, the public watching.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think 11 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: is just too late in the evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We start at 6 30 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's more reasonable to have it go from like 6 30 to 9 30 and if there's a motion to recess
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then we should take a roll call, you know, is there a motion to recess, you know, and put everything on the table that we haven't covered, and then it gets put on the next meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, I have a motion to amend the time change from 11pm to 930pm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the chair will then ask you know as we're getting close to 930pm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there is a motion to recess or continue the meeting until an extended period of time is stated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So for example, like the chair would say, is there a motion to recess the meeting if we're not done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we're close to being done, then you could maybe say, is there a motion to recess the meeting until like 10 p.m., you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we might get done before 10 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I just think going from 6.30 to 11 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: with everybody's busy days and lives and having to be at school the next morning or work very early.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I don't retain anything after 9 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just gone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, and I'm going to keep my motion on the floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I happen to, you know, understand and agree with the superintendent, I have to get up at 445am, and I am just exhausted by 930, and it's the next day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's like I was on a boat or a plane.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't get up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't think.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I drink coffee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just doesn't matter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can't focus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even the next day, you're affected by the very, very, very long day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you can't drink coffee before the school committee meeting, because then I'll be up all night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's just I'm going to keep my motion on the floor, and I can hear from both sides.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just think that if we, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: have this time frame and we know that we're going later and there's important agenda items or there are people from the public just as i mentioned in the part of the motion that a motion can be made to extend the meeting until xx time and i think that would be reasonable for the administrators the school committee the public and just the students just everybody i'm just trying to make it
[Kathy Kreatz]: equitable for everybody, everybody has to get somewhere in the next morning, whether it's school, work, family, everybody's got to get up, you know, so I'm just trying to, you know, I've seen our meetings, they can carry on, we're doing much better.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And sometimes there are items that take longer, but that's not typical.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Typical, we do run to 930.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then there's always the occasional late meeting, which can happen with a controversial or very important topic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're not like,
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're not blocking it down to just 6.30 to 9.30, that's it, the meeting's over.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're still giving, as part of my motion, I'm still giving the offer to extend the meeting if a motion is made.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I won't talk, I let other people talk.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't wanna withdraw the motion, but I'm thinking, I heard from Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham and maybe we could make the alternative where we could start the meeting at six, we could end the meeting at 9.30.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's the additional half hour so that we're not keeping the administrators past 9.30 unless there's an extension to do so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm making a motion now to change the start time to 6 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the end time to 9.30 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right, and I'm sorry, I meant to say the start time that she mentioned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So my motion, I'm going to change to, let me just get back.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have to close the window to look at the words here, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm amending my original motion to read
[Kathy Kreatz]: The regular school committee will begin at 6 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No meeting of the school committee will go beyond 9.30 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If the school committee is still meeting at 9.30 p.m., the chair will ask, is there a motion to recess the meeting until a certain time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or is there a motion to extend the meeting beyond 9.30 in the evening and state the time so that everybody understands that there is an end time coming, whether it's going to be 10 or 10.30?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, a motion to continue the meeting requires the two thirds vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the time changes would be 6.00 PM to 9.30 PM second member.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What about, I didn't withdraw my motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was the motion that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin seconded me on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Gotcha.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What numbers are those?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What numbers are those?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, Mayor, because I just have mine in a Google Drive, so I just have the numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have pages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're different pages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, I'm just going through those numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I do have some concerns about number 77.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I actually even reached out to the city council.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it says all requests passed by the city council that pertain to member public schools will be sent to the school committee to be part of the next agenda in accordance with the school committee procedure and timing is found in addendum one, add item to agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The city clerk is authorized to add items to the school committee agenda, following our established procedure and add item to agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The school committee may refer such requests to the superintendent upon a majority vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The superintendent is not authorized to respond to city council request to attend city council meetings or perform any actions requested by the city council without a majority vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just reading this and, you know, it's just.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, the city council is another body.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we have the add the item, add the agenda item instructions for us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're going to give our instructions to the city clerk to add items to the school committee agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just think, I don't think that is a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: whether I'm misunderstanding this, and then I wasn't sure, and it's not something that's currently being done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did, you know, ask about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then where the superintendent is not authorized to respond or request to any email, you know, correspondence with city council, I feel it's too restrictive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just wondering if I could maybe hear from the superintendent on what her thoughts are on the way that this rule is written.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really just don't really follow it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I will wait to hear from Member Ruseau and Member McLaughlin before I go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to hear what everybody's thinking, and then I'll go at the end.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I still have some concerns about both parts of the way that this is written.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And let me just, I'm sorry because I when I do click off I have to get back to it one moment I'm going to get back to it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, it's over here now one second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, okay, so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been listening to everybody, and I was thinking about the first part of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I, this is just what I'm thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe we could change it to say something like this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All motions passed by member city council that pertain to the member public schools will be sent by the president of the council to the school committee chair to, to be reviewed as an agenda
[Kathy Kreatz]: to review it as an agenda item seeking guidance from the committee in accordance with the school committee procedure and timing as found the addendum, you know, add item to agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's something that the superintendent would then make that determination.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, the mayor would then maybe forward it on to the superintendent and she can make the determination on, okay, let's get this added on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanna seek the guidance from the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, and that, you know, we would have some sort of a process where you're thinking about in the future we're going to have a lot of requests, maybe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that could be part of it, you know, just a simpler plan for the rule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then, you know, the second part.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I just, I don't understand why we have to include the majority vote of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if the superintendent receives a simple email, you know, oh, I just wanted to know, just checking in, you know, the vocational program is having, you know, this particular new equipment, you know, oh, did that get purchased, you know, something like that, just something simple.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I feel as though she gets the email, she should be able to email back the city council without putting that on the agenda, so that we can take a full boat at the next school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just thinking of it, just keeping it try to keep it a little simpler, where we just say, the superintendent is permitted to respond to, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: reasonable, I'm sorry, to city council reasonable requests to attend city council meetings or perform actions requested by the city council, you know, within reason, you know, and it's, you know, it might need a school, but it depends on like what the request is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might be something that has to go on the agenda that we all have to make a vote on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But, you know, I think that the way that it's written right now, it's just,
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just too restrictive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even though I've heard from everybody and I still feel that it does insinuate that we are having problems with the city council and we are not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I do think maybe in the future with a lot of things going on, with upgrades to the high school and body cameras on police officers, yes, we might have some requests but
[Kathy Kreatz]: As the superintendent mentioned, it's very rare.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just think getting it on the agenda, you know, would be the best way to do it if it comes through from the city council president.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just trying to really just simplify this rule and just, you know, kind of just make it a little bit simpler and friendlier.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, and I'm trying to word it, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm working on it right now, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm trying to put it all together with what the mayor just mentioned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let me just reflect on what the mayor just mentioned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She mentioned that the current process, and I'm just trying to go through what she just said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The current process is that she will, if something was voted on the floor,
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let me just get this going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All motions passed by Medford city council that pertain to Medford public schools will be sent by city council president or city clerk to the school committee chair to be put on the, the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: in accordance with the procedure that we have in place.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, yes, thank you and I can just re reword it because I'm just doing this just from all the conversation and I'm trying the best here so okay so let me just see if I have this right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I would make a motion to change number 77 to say all motions passed by the member city council that pertain to me for public schools will be sent by city council president to the school committee chair to be reviewed
[Kathy Kreatz]: whether or not it should be added as an agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm sorry, I'm just losing you because I wrote it down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's as far as I've retained.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's just my opinion, but I know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I agree.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think the way that it's working right now is working, but we don't have it documented.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm trying to get
[Kathy Kreatz]: Number 77 recorded the way it's working now, exactly the way it's working now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I'm trying to do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, just simple, you know, and, and then like all this, all these rules, if we're having issues with any one of them at any point in the future, as we said already, we can bring this up on a regular school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd like to change this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Something's not working, but we have to start with something.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let's start with what we're doing right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's my motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I hope everybody got that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What did member Kreatz say?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I just said no because I would just like to strike that whole section, that whole sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just not in agreement with that sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's why I'm no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, motion on the floor to strike the sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The entire last sentence, the superintendent is not authorized to respond to city council requests, attend school committee meeting, city council meetings, or perform any actions requested by the city council without a majority vote at the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I still have the motion on the floor for the beginning part of the
[Kathy Kreatz]: The rule, the way that I had, you know, read that out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't remember.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did I have a second by anybody on the way that I had worded it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just looking at it right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I erased a word, but I was making changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, shoot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me just grab this for a second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because when I was typing, I actually think I erased some words.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, gosh.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me see number 77.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's right in front of the paper.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so this is what I had originally said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All requests passed by Medford City Council that pertain to Medford Public Schools will be sent to the school committee chair and will be reviewed with the superintendent to determine if it can be answered or needs to be added to the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you put that in the chat for me?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cause I, let me get there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna do that right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just looking around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, there it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that sounds fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to go get the language again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Instead of typing, I'm going to try to copy and paste it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to be typing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, guys.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I actually did remove a sentence from the original document on my Google Drive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I've got to retype it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham, if you want to, I'm putting it in the chat now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me just get back to the chat.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Getting a little twisted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I don't know if you can see it, because when I see it, I can see it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can in normal, like it's not all crazy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The way it shows for me, it's giant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, all right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, if you want to copy and paste and then put the portion that you were talking about, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham, where that would fit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Last sentence, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And by the way, I just did my grammar check and I made some changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Grammarly told me to make some changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just repasted it with the grammar, correct grammar, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So take a look at the new little post that I just did in the chat because I have my grammar check in another area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do I have a second on the motion, the way that it's prepared and checked?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, as amended by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just gonna go into my notes again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just closed everything down when I was around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it's, it's not really a concern, but it was just maybe an add to number 82.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's currently 82 says the secretary will actively monitor remote participants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just thinking it should say, um, the secretary and the mayor and the secretary will actively monitor, uh, remote participants to identify when there was a hand raise.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that way there, we have two eyes looking out the mayor and the secretary to just make sure everybody's heard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then I guess, you know, then let me, just to have another person on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So then my amendment would say the secretary and superintendent or another administrator, designated administrator will actively monitor remote participants to identify when there's a hand raised.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think number 83 is redundant with 82.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 83 says the secretary will ensure the chair is aware when remote participants wish to speak.
[Kathy Kreatz]: that it's the same as number 82, I'm thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just think we should just strike number 83 because it's redundant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, and I withdraw mine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to mention on number 84.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think there just needs to be an exception to this rule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it should say the superintendent will be present in person or via remote participation at all regular meetings of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: With the exception of
[Kathy Kreatz]: illness, bereavement, or emergency.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I would like to just hear from the superintendent about what her thoughts are on that because, you know, people are going to get sick, there are going to be family emergencies, you know, so that's what I was thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question about number 90 so I don't know if you want to finish the conversation that's currently ongoing, and then I can go after that, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to ask the superintendent about the rule number 90.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I believe this is a new rule that's being put forth and this would be something that would be handled by her team.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would just like to hear from Dr. Edward-Vinson on what her thoughts are on rule 90.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kahn, for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was very informative in the frequently asked questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think it's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my son was a student at the vocational school and he struggled with math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really wish they had this program when he was there, because he got into college, accepted for the engineering program, but he changed majors because he's the phobia of math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he had great teachers at the vocational school, in fact, co-taught teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So will co-taught teaching be an option for the integrated math classes?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absolutely.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yes, thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so it says the student placement is based on the teacher recommendation and parent input.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there going to be a
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, a decision date, like will the students and the families know where they're going to be going, whether they're going into integrated math, or are they just going to fill out a form that says, you know, I want to go traditional route, or I want to go integrated math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one last question, because we're approaching the budget season and this is going to be a new pilot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will we be needing any additional math teachers?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What if there's an increase in
[Kathy Kreatz]: integrated math versus traditional pathways?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's a great question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you turn on your microphone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was on, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I think what the superintendent mentioned was that we're going to have a presentation, probably in April, where we'll hear, you know, what the work they've done so far on the website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Exactly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering, like, you know, I think maybe we have to wait to have
[Kathy Kreatz]: that meeting, you know, if there's further questions, then we would have another subcommittee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just wondering, you know, if we could hold off on this until we hear from the superintendent's presentation in April.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, the data will tell a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report, and I think it's great, the proposal that you have here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question, because you're going to preclude the four-day week option.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do we currently have families that are enrolled in that right now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I'm just curious like if we're gonna reach out to those families to just let them know that, you know, in advance, these are gonna be some changes and you can either drop down to three or increase to five.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then there's also the tuition, you know, application for a discount if needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one thing to mention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say I sent an email today to Susie with three small updates, just spelling of some names, you know, members names and missing one word in one of the motions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, but a motion to second to accept with those amendments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What about if on the agenda, it was added, I know we have added
[Kathy Kreatz]: sometimes old items, you know, unresolved.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm thinking, you know, if the motions were expressed and the date was listed, it could just be carried at the end of the agenda to be trapped, you know, for the outstanding motions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That might be a possibility.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's an option.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So everything that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin said, and, um, yes, um, having the schedule, um, you know, what we've done in the past is we've all been made aware of the dates, you know, and the timeline so that we know what to expect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and it's important that we get that information posted, you know, so that the community can also be made aware and, you know, when the dates are, so they're, you know, wondering what meetings they want to attend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: if they'll be made available on Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If the 10th is too soon, Mr. Murphy, if you think you need some more time, if 210 is a little bit too soon, could you let us know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm amenable to that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm in favor of doing that way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I was actually going to bring up number nine, because last year, Paulette and I we put forth a resolution to change the start times of the meetings to 630.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And because we had received feedback from the public.
[Kathy Kreatz]: last school year um that they preferred to start at 7 p.m and we had gotten we we had started at just different times like we were starting at 5 sometimes 6 sometimes 6 30 so we as a group um accepted the resolution and chose 6 30 you know as a happy medium for the public administrators etc um so i mean if
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I guess like, how does everybody else feel about that start time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, could we try it at six and we might have to change this rule if it's not working out for the community, you know, to make it to the meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, so I'm not ready to vote on this yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't get to speak on it yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did have concerns about the meeting in August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not in favor of having a meeting in August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We haven't had meeting in August and I've been on school committee for six years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Last year and the year before during COVID, we got an email from the superintendent with an update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that went very well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I would like to make a friendly amendment to have an email communication from the superintendent with an update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if members have questions or concerns, they could speak directly with the superintendent during the summer over the phone if they have any questions or concerns.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm making a motion to amend this to, there will be, the superintendent will send out a broadcast communication to the committee members in August, maybe the first Monday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think what she was doing actually, I'm sorry, she was sending out updates every week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let me just get back to what I was saying.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm making a motion to amend this to say the superintendent will send out a broadcast communication to all members, a brief broadcast memo to all members each week in August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It doesn't have to be on a Monday, maybe on the Friday at the end of the week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I I'm, I'm not in favor of having a summer meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know, I still want to keep my motion on the floor to having, um, communication brought, you know, updates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I think at any point, an emergency meeting can be called, you know, if we had to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm still gonna keep my amendment as is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I felt the same way, Mayor, and I actually had the same feedback written down that you just mentioned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to hear from the rest of the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I motion to change it to the following Monday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, um, yeah, so I was, I just want to get back to a kind of loss.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, here it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So when I was reading this rule, I was just thinking back to earlier this month, the January 3 meeting was postponed until the 10th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just found out, you know, just by getting the,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the change date, zoom, um, you know, meeting request.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I I'm not familiar with the current process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know, how was it handled?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I don't think, you know, we've officially had a process to postpone it and it's been at the discretion of the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm wondering if somebody could just maybe help answer that question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because we haven't had a process or a rule on canceling or postponing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's typically been at the discretion of the superintendent or the mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I was reading ahead and there's another number that connects with this number, I think, number 17.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the event of an emergency due to extraordinary circumstances, the requirement that notification of cancellation is provided in writing may be waived and members may notify the superintendent of their desire to cancel the meeting, email or in person, any verbal requests must be followed with a written request.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The two rules are in two different sections.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think it should just be consolidated into one rule, you know, that goes, you know, into both of these situations, because we're talking about canceling a meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, it should include in the event of an emergency, you know, in a situation like this, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's at the discretion of the superintendent to cancel the meeting by telephone, email, or in person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, we did have, you know, if there is a snow storm the day of the meeting, you know, we would have to cancel the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, something like that could happen, especially in the winter months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'm just trying to think of something I was gonna say.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, cause I know Mr. Russo wants the exact word.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm trying to think of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm making a motion
[Kathy Kreatz]: to amend number 14 to say no meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, let me just catch my train of thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The superintendent and or mayor have the discretion to cancel a meeting and notify all committee members via email as soon as possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I had similar questions, because, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think we first have to, you know, reach out to city council to ask if they are interested in having a joint meeting with us and work out the details.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Uh, what, what is the meeting about?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, uh, are we discussing goals?
[Kathy Kreatz]: The pre budget goals.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we discussing, you know, the, the budget information that we have?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was, I was just a little bit confused about this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, this rule, the way it's presented.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm unclear about it myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yes, I'm member Ruseau, would you be willing to amended to say something like the chair will schedule to optional annual joint meetings with the city council, a budget meeting will be held in the spring of the, you know, of each year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a general meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I guess I'm confused about the general meeting in March on goals, because I'm thinking spring is typically March, April, so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I'm amenable to that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I motion to change the word wording to say the chair will schedule one annual joint meeting with the city council and everything else that was previously stated will remain the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I was reading through, I'm just going all the way to 30, just let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so let me just get back up here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just reading my notes that I wrote about one of these.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm on number 21.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, in number 21, in number 22, I noticed something, but I wasn't sure why it wasn't in number 21.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So in the rule 22, it states the meeting will not be broadcast or recorded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, being a public meeting, the meeting will allow members of the public to attend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The public will not be offered an opportunity to speak.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, that was in rule 22, it wasn't in rule 21.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wasn't sure, you know, the workshop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're not gonna have the public come in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not gonna be broadcasted because we're getting training on something.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what is the difference between that and the retreat?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I was getting the two, the workshop and the retreat.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking about when the MASC was here and I think we called it a retreat and Dorothy came in and we didn't invite members of the public to attend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we had a discussion
[Kathy Kreatz]: on our own, where we could talk and, you know, converse, ask questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We didn't, it wasn't recorded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we didn't invite members of the public.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure if how everybody feels about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If somebody members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I motion to accept that friendly suggestion to strike 21 and
[Kathy Kreatz]: change, well, combine it and just make it one, you know, one rule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Workshops and or retreats may be scheduled on an as-needed basis and everything else would be the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, on number 23, I'm just not really sure I follow this rule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It says the chair or vice chair of the school committee will, when needed, have a standing meeting with the superintendent prior to any scheduled meeting, workshop or hearing to collaborate on the agenda, setting and help focus on the agenda and superintendent on the goals of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I, we, we haven't been doing something like that, um, where the vice chair has been collaborating.
[Kathy Kreatz]: With the superintendent and the mayor about the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, I was making a motion to, to, you know, to strike just the word, the vice chair, the chair, or.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The chair of the school committee will, when needed, have a standing meeting with the superintendent prior to any scheduled meeting, workshop, or hearing to collaborate on the agenda, setting to help focus both the agenda of the school committee and the superintendent on goals of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Such standing meetings will be held with agreement between the superintendent and the chair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the chair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would also just be me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How do you feel about the,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the way it's proposed and superintendent, I would just like to hear from you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I have a motion on the floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to amend it to say the chair of the school committee, and when unavailable, will delegate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: To the vice chair, when needed, have a standing meeting and continue, everything else is gonna be the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And at the end, the last sentence will say, such standing meetings will be held by agreement between the superintendent and the chair or vice chair if delegated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to get it ready right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I was emailing Mr. Russo at the same time, and I missed what number we're talking about right now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are we gonna, does this mean the school committee we're going to evaluate each other's performance?
[Kathy Kreatz]: May I know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I actually had that written down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was gonna make a motion that we, and I know Mr. Russo wants the exact wording, so I'm just gonna read what it says right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so agenda for all regular meetings by the school committee will be available to the public and press copies of the agenda will be filed with the office and clerk and posted on the website of the school committee, no later than Thursday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Prior to the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Prior to the scheduled meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: copies of the agenda will be made available at the Medford Public Library.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that something that we currently do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Copies at the Medford Public Library?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanna strike that sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so copies made available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so let me just go back one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm gonna delete that sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: just as you just deleted copies of the agenda will be posted on line.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because that is what we do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We post the agenda online, and it's it's broadcasting of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, right, that was gonna get removed, yes, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to change it to 630.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I had a question on, sorry, I'm just trying to, it was an earlier number, I didn't get to ask the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was in the 40s, I'm getting there now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, it was number 40.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The agenda will include a listing of all recommendations being brought forward such as listing with a formatted format in accordance with the be dB agenda creation and format regular meetings the agenda will also include a listing of all motions reports and other communications and reports to the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that is currently what we're doing, but it doesn't right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The agenda does not contain a listing of all the motions that we've taken at meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just motioning to remove that word
[Kathy Kreatz]: because right now the agenda doesn't list all the motions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so motion to change the word to resolutions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, okay, sorry, because when I minimize and maximize, I get back, sorry, I'm going there now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so number 52, I am not in favor of the way that this is, the way that the rule is written.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The rule states public comment will be limited to three minutes per individual and will be limited to those matters on the agenda that I'm fine with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Members of the public wishing to speak must register their intent prior to the meeting on a form provided for said purpose by the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That I would like to remove that sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The chair may limit the comment to two minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm fine with that on the number of individuals signed up to speak, but okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the chair may limit the comments
[Kathy Kreatz]: for public participation to two minutes as needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if it was a busy night, the chair will announce the time limit prior to public comment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, at every regular meeting, the public will also be encouraged to submit their comments in writing via email or by emailing the superintendent that we're currently doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Written comments will be forwarded to all members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That is what Mr. Russo is doing currently right now with the auto forward.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we had discussion about this at our last meeting, and we are going to, I think, be moving away from submitting the comments via email, or we're not going to be reading them all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's a lot here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I definitely want to remove
[Kathy Kreatz]: The part where it says members of the public wishing to speak must register their intent prior to the meeting on a form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That is an inconvenience for the public to register and what their comments are going to be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not in favor of the way that this is currently written and I'm proposing to change it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: removing that sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yeah, that's, I motion second that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What group of numbers are we going to talk about next?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to just get through, look at my notes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have any questions on any of those numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can wait.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question on 77, so I can hold off for now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I was going to ask for some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, so this rule essentially is giving us the permission to suspend the rules, to move an agenda item out of order.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's, that's what you're saying, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I forgot to lower my hand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, I have a question and you might've mentioned it and I just might've missed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you did say that students will need to opt in to get the rapid test.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, um, are these, are they, is there going to be a distribution of the test kits and you know, they're going to be sent home every week or every two weeks, or is this,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they're still going to be doing the rapid tests in school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I wasn't sure what that meant because I've been hearing some communications on the news where if schools opt in, they're going to be sending home the kits to the families.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that what we're doing or we're not doing that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And is there a new consent form in the works right now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say, you know, this sounds so exciting and there's so many offerings and it's terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The staff that you mentioned, the 20 to 28 staff members who have already, you know, their willingness to participate in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds incredible and it's very exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Before we, I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I was a little confused when I read this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are you taking out, like this is, the way I read this is that you're removing residents may also submit their comments by writing the superintendent prior to the meeting or by emailing and provide the school, you know, school committee email prior to or during the,
[Kathy Kreatz]: item on the agenda, written comments must be kept to a length, which will allow them to be read into the record for less than three minutes, so forth, that whole sentence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then it picks up a welcome inclusive community, which it picks up down here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it does, the way that the new section that you want us to add in, the way I read it, is that we're removing that you can email the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's how I read it too, and I'm not okay with that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Voted to use, to remove the school committee email?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't remember doing that at all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a follow up question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So since the community can still write to that email address, you know, is there anywhere in this policy where we can state that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you can continue to send your emails to this email, because like right now we're just removing that entire, you know, that piece about writing to the email and that the email will be received by all school committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, they will be copied on all, you know, all those emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there any way we can incorporate that here, you know, just a statement, you know, for transparency reasons that, you know, you can still continue to write this email address?
[Kathy Kreatz]: because I really honestly, you know, I just remembered us, the situation happening differently.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do remember that Mr. Russo wasn't going to read all the statements or make a determination on whether some could be read or some could not be read.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I do think that we should, you know, continue to keep the email address, you know, for transparency reasons.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the policy, but not in this language that's going to go on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think even just a little asterisk with the footnote, I think would be helpful for the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just gonna be one little, you know, italicized footnote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would like to motion that we move this to a committee of the whole meeting so that all members can participate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I read through the rules.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to first thank member Ruseau for putting this together in the time and effort that he must have spent putting this together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And as he mentioned in the email, he spent three years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't think it's appropriate for us tonight
[Kathy Kreatz]: to go through a document that he spent three years working on, and we're not gonna be able to provide our input.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need to be able to provide some input and feedback and possible amendments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think the only way we can do this is with a committee of the whole and going through line by line.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Now, I don't think some of the numbers necessarily, I don't have an issue with all the numbers, but I do have many questions on many numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and I think we could go through it and go through like a set of 10.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One to 10, approve, yes or no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, what number do we wanna discuss?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't think we have to go through every single solitary number, but we need to do this as a group and not through a rule subcommittee, then come back here, and then we have more questions, and then it's just gonna go on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think the only way we could do this is with the Committee of the Whole.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we can have a motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think I was confused about what this meant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what you're saying is that you want to
[Kathy Kreatz]: You understand, and I understand, that four members of the committee constitute a quorum, and that a smaller group, which would be three, mean they could meet and adjourn from day to day, but that could be a violation of the open meeting law.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that correct?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because that's a subcommittee, and a subcommittee would have to be posted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess that, I was looking for clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's what this, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I understand now this was just cleaning up the policy and you know, I, the way I read it, I thought you wanted to, you know, you know, appeal that members could meet and adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I said, I was confused and I started reading open meeting law.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So you didn't need that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted, I had a question and just maybe need some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is this flagship committee doing the research and making the recommendation whether it's going to be a new school, a refurbished high school, or is this committee deciding on the educational direction that we're taking?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wasn't sure because of the MSBA information that was in there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a lot of the other goals.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If somebody could clarify that, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the committee will receive like the MSBA statement of interest that was submitted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they'll know what they're looking at and it's still going to take us probably another
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, till the end of the year for us to hear back on whether we're going to get the MSDA.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Correct.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I thank you for the clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have the same question that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did look at our upcoming agenda for this evening, and there's a resolution that Mr. Russo has put on with the list of functions and duties that he put together, a draft that he's proposing to us in a resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was wondering, and I know it would take time to probably have another committee of the whole to discuss the functions and duties that are proposed in that resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, so I was wondering, you know, like for now, maybe we could remove that and put it back in so that we can, you know, kind of move forward with this resolution so that, you know, we can begin, you know, following the procedures of referring things to the subcommittee and going through scheduling that way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yes, I wanted to talk about what, what, the way that I read it was, um, I, it seems like some of the subcommittees don't actually fit with the way the resolution's written because, you know, not every subcommittee is making policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like for example, the building and ground subcommittee meetings, we weren't meeting to set policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were meeting to talk about updates, like for the Mebita High School sign, hear information from the vocational principal about the great things students are doing, things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were getting updates on the status of where things were with the generator or the boiler.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We weren't making policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the same would be for the personnel subcommittee that I've been on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I think that,
[Kathy Kreatz]: there's been a resolution on the agenda, you know, to have some descriptions of, you know, occupations, which, you know, could be some sort of a policy, but that's not everything that takes place in the personnel subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've met to interview for new hires, things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think, you know, I can understand what the CPAC board is stating in their email because, you know, not every subcommittee is setting policies all the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, sometimes we will set a policy in the subcommittee, you know, occasionally for some, but not for all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not all about policymaking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just have a question and you know, you know, I understand like, you know, what you want us to do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, I understand that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so like, let's use my example.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I am the, um, building and grounds chairperson and, um, we're in this new policy just, you know, for the future, we were in this new policy and, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got some emails from some members and, you know, we've been hearing for years that there should be a sign in Everett high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, it's not a policy, but I could, and this is just, this is what, is this what I could do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I could then write a resolution that says I'm making a resolution that, um, I,
[Kathy Kreatz]: schedule a building and ground subcommittee meeting so that we can discuss options for a sign from Everett High School and then it would go, I would do the add the agenda button or link and I would send it off and then it would go on the agenda at one meeting and then here we would make the full vote if the body wanted to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: have that meeting, they would take that vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If they didn't, it wouldn't pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, and I guess like going forward in the future, you know, some of these subcommittees are non, they're not always making policy, you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I mean, I can understand Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin's points.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking something, you know, over the past couple of weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if it would help in any way, but I think it might if there was,
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of things I've been looking at have exceptions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There can be exceptions to the rule, and maybe there could be an exception that, and I don't have the exact, perfect wording, but in some subcommittees,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they can have regular scheduled meetings per year, XX.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's say I don't have the perfect number or anything either, but I know in my meetings, I've only had two or three the most.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So like for some subcommittees, they should plan to meet four times per year or more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: three times per year, you know, and it doesn't necessarily have to list the subcommittees because that can be part of the functions and duties once those are determined, but we're not there yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, so that was just something I was thinking about that, you know, we're, the rule is so specific for the policy making subcommittees, but it's just, you know, it's, it has to be a little bit broader to, you know, to go into more depth for the other subcommittees, cause it doesn't really work for all of them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I think.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, and I did, you know, reach out and talk to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot and she did explain to me that this is how the policy was, you know, before I came on board as a school committee member.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then things kind of shifted away and we started doing things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the other way, which is the way we've been doing them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So she did explain it to me that this is how it was.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, and I guess now I'm trying to figure out if this is how it was, and I never knew what it was like, you know, what do I do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I was talking to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin at one point, and it seemed like our subcommittees had just like defunct because we never had them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then it just kind of set into me, I was a new subcommittee member, a new school committee member,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't know that I was supposed to refer things to subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just, we didn't have them, honestly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we did every once in a while Mia would get a lot of emails and then we would get in touch with the mayor and then the mayor would then put it on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we would have the subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So then I thought it through and I'm like, oh my God, that's what we did do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I didn't know because it was never written down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like you said, we never had anything written down, none of us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know so now we're we're trying to put something together um and i think we do need something but at the same time it's not going to work for every solid you know every subcommittee you know there can be exceptions um maybe i can just i i think it can work because number three it doesn't say policy on here it says um carry out business so for you it would be
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, I know I mentioned, you know, adding an exception, you know, to this, um, resolution, you know, that some subcommittees, you know, as needed may have, you know, three
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, scheduled subcommittee meetings, which would be like at the beginning of the year, the middle of the year and the end of the year, so that, you know, we could hear some feedback from, you know, like, for example, the CPAC meeting, which is, you know, I think that for that subcommittee, you know, it seems like
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I remember when Erin had taken on that responsibility and she took it upon herself and she held those meetings and invited everybody to those meetings and it was very productive and the results were shared and it was a good working relationship.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, if three is too much, you could start with two and then add, like, that's why I was thinking of adding it as an exception.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I'm saying for my committee,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't think I'm going to have a problem with my committees adding it as a resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But, you know, when I think about Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin's committee, you know, you know, that that seems a little bit difficult because
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, we have been having them regularly scheduled just the past year, like, you know, on a regularly scheduled calendar event.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it just seems very abrupt.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're going to, you know, discontinue that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I understand that, you know, it's involving a lot of personnel and their time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I understand that, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: that the time is associated with the monetary value, you know, because they're spending the time at those meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But, you know, if they're informational and we're sharing information and, you know, we're receiving information from the public, I think it's beneficial to continue with the meetings, you know, if,
[Kathy Kreatz]: it was agreeable with all the individuals involved on the specific number of meetings per year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's why I say like to start, have two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I'm just thinking and I'm getting ahead of myself, but like reading the policies that were set forth by Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In his policy, one of the mentions having two annual meetings with,
[Kathy Kreatz]: with, um, city council.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, so that's specific in his rules and functions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Why can't we have something specific in the rules and functions specifically pertaining to the CPAC, you know, um, and, and their disability, you know, committee, the behavioral health special education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I mean, I know that I'm kind of getting ahead of myself because, you know, we are at the beginning stages of writing documents and, you know, it's the first time we're doing this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've never done this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we want to do it and we want to do it right, you know, to make it fit for everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of them is just not going to fit for everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think as needed, that's why if we put an exception and we don't list them, because there might be an exception and,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, maybe those subcommittees just, you know, it's better for them to have the regular meetings, but not necessarily every month.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's just an idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I would like to make an amendment that we have an exception to the rule that allows for
[Kathy Kreatz]: subcommittees as needed to have scheduled
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, let's just say for the purpose of the document to have two or three scheduled subcommittee meetings per year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And honestly, I don't think some of the committee members are going to do that, but I do think that some of the committees are going to need it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I can see right off the top, the personnel, we don't need something like that for the personnel.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We, we hardly meet about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it just, it makes sense for some, I mean, the rules, it's always going to have policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's a policy making,
[Kathy Kreatz]: subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the engagement communication that had some policy in it, but then it also had discussion and it had topics about afterschool pay and things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So in the curriculum, that would be policy, you know, so like most of them are going to be, you know, it's going to be easy to follow the resolution to add them on the agenda, but then for the committees that don't, I think it's, you know, fair to,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me look at the new subcommittees.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I was looking at last year's.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the newer ones, diversity and equity, I think for those to start with in the strategic planning, I think to start with, they would have to maybe have at least one or two meetings per year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're newer committees.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Before we take the vote, could I just mention just on the amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: have one meeting per year listening session and maybe and if needed, you know, to have an additional meeting if necessary, something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's not going to list the subcommittee, so it's not going to exclude any subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It may, if they want to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It may or may not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Jenny Graham.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Paul Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I just wanted to say that for the good of the order.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought that the orientation that the superintendent put on and I think it was Dorothy from the MSC she had come out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was very informative and a refresher for all of us as we're, you know, getting back into a new term.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, because sometimes we can, we know what we're doing, but sometimes we can forget and get away from what we should be doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it would be great and, you know, look forward to doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miss Hines Mr. Murphy and everybody for the report, and, you know, all the nurses for everything you're doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know if.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Currently on our website, we do have the Medford School COVID exposure guidance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So will that be updated for next week?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it still has some of the information, you know, tested positive for COVID-19, must isolate for 10 days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that will have to be updated, you know, if we could, you know, in preparation for next week,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I spoke first, sorry, but I'll- It doesn't, you can go first, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin, that's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I thank you for bringing this to us, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have, I was reading number three and I just need some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do you mean that like, so for example, you know, I've been the chair for the building and grounds subcommittee and I have, you know, kind of developed the agenda with the assistance of Mr. Murphy, the superintendent,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the Director of Building and Grounds, and then community member input, what they're interested in hearing about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So for example, the Merritt High School sign was part of my agenda last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This year, something that might be of interest would be bike racks for middle school and high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I'm just confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are you saying that the chair would no longer create the agenda
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would have to, or the person who's the chair would have to wait for something to get referred to the committee and how will that happen?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess, you know, I had a lot of questions about number three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was confused about number three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I'm not following what you're saying I'm not talking about spending money.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm simply talking about, you know, when I've been the chair of the building and grounds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've received updates with exciting news from the vocational school, you know, different things the students are doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not following what you're saying.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I'm not talking about spending money.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, sometimes the meetings would be informational where I would be receiving information about updates or where we are with statuses of, you know, like let's say the walkie talkies or, you know, where we are with like last year, for example, where we were with the sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not following and I'm sorry, maybe if there's somebody else that would be able to explain it to me a little bit easier.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just not following like, how would items get referred to like, for example,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are you saying that the only way to have something referred to the subcommittee is what, what you've been doing all along which is like putting your resolution on the agenda so like if I wanted to have something on the, on my like let's say I was the chair of the building and grounds and I wanted to have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a discussion on bike racks and what do we think we have?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What do we think we need?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're not talking about money.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're just talking about having a community discussion, which I did get some emails on earlier in September.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we wanted to do something with that meeting, but we were held off because it was the election time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we couldn't have subcommittee meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at some point that might've been an agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess that I'm talking about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm still, I don't know what number three means in terms of how does an item get, if I'm the chair of a committee, how does the item get on that agenda for the committee?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cause I used to be, or the chair would be the person who would build that agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does that help?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have another follow up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So for example, I'm just thinking back to other agendas I've had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if I had four or five, six or seven things that I was going to put on the agenda, are you saying I would do seven resolutions or seven separate resolutions that I would be putting on the agenda?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just something new and, you know, I'm just, I'm not sure where the mayor is going to be forming our subcommittees, you know, I don't know what.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What, what is my responsibility?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just, you know, I've been doing it the other way, building the agenda with the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been working with the superintendent, the finance director, director of, you know, building and grounds and sometimes even city hall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I, I haven't been, let's say bypassing the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We would only vote for things to move it out to the full committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then the full committee would take a vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We never,
[Kathy Kreatz]: voted on anything without the full support of the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The only thing that I'm seeing here differently is that in order for a chair to build their agenda, they first would have to add
[Kathy Kreatz]: The agenda items to the regular school committee as a resolution, get approval before they, the person could go and then schedule their subcommittee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I guess you know like I guess I was just looking for more instructions, you know, because if I take this vote tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have to know what I'm doing as a chairperson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you see what I mean?
[Kathy Kreatz]: With instructions, because I've been doing it one way the whole time, this is just a new way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have to know it all the way through.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How am I going to do that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: The way that I described it,
[Kathy Kreatz]: how it's going to be so like if I have four items that I don't have any items right now in fact but if I had four items I would put four resolutions you know that I would like this to be resolved that it would go on the building ground subcommittee because we would have to take a vote on each separate resolution which would be separate agenda item
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the way I understand it is to add a resolution and then it would get voted on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then if it was approved, then I could go ahead and build the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Consent agenda is approved.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Number four, reports of subcommittees, special education subcommittee meeting minutes 12, 16, 2021.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member McLaughlin, motion to table.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Edward-Vinson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Up next, we have a COVID-19 update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. David Murphy, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wait for Mr. McLaughlin to turn on your microphone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And on the Roberts, the Connections Program, right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so at either the Brooks or the McGlynn, if you're going to include programmatic elements, they should also be at the Brooks or the McGlynn, right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's access at the... Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then any other programmatic elements that are broken out for the other schools, if you could just speak, if you wouldn't mind.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: With the 23 new students, they're calling different days throughout the last two months, and I'm assuming they all weren't in queue trying to be placed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: About how long does it take to place a child in kindergarten once a parent calls and said they've moved here?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Clusey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have special recognition of school committee member, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Paulette van de Kloot, retiring after 32 years of service to the Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to invite up Dr. Maurice-Edouard-Vincent to start us off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Paulette, for all of your service to our children in the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a pleasure being a colleague of yours and on both sides of this podium, learning from you, both as a parent and as a colleague.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 32 years of service is remarkable, and I was just trying to do some of the math, and I know how long these meetings can be, so I'm sure I'm underestimating, but I'm ballparking somewhere over 800 hours of service and volunteer hours in meetings that you've committed
[Kathy Kreatz]: over your 32 years to our students and our community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank you for your 32 years of service and your friendship.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just like everybody said here tonight, it's just incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Your knowledge, your kindness, you know, we can call you, text you with any questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You have a remarkable memory.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you seem to remember everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know how you do it and I'm so glad you know my son got to know you with the volunteer program and you know you were a great mentor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He just loves volunteering and I'm so glad that he started with that program and it got him into a schedule and it just seems that everything you do it's just it's just wonderful and incredible and I'm so happy for you for your retirement to spend time with your grandchildren and your family and just to have
[Kathy Kreatz]: more free time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You really deserve it, and I'm really happy for you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I will miss you, and I'll probably reach out to you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have a citation, and I'll read it now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is a certificate of special congressional recognition presented to Paulette Vanderkoot for her 32 years exemplary as member of Medford School Committee in recognition of outstanding and invaluable service to the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Signed by Senator Ed Mackey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to be brief as well but I just want to say I've always respected you as a Councilor when you were a school committee member but and I know you were thinking should you run the last time and I just want to
[Kathy Kreatz]: from the bottom of my heart, thank you for doing so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: These last two years have been extremely difficult for all of us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Myself never have served in the school committee, a couple others that were very recent and you helped lead the committee through the toughest two years that I've ever been in politics and probably in your 32 years as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were nights where we would have eight hour meetings and I'd say, I need to come in and sit in
[Kathy Kreatz]: say something and say the right thing and you would swoop in and just calmly and rationally solve what we needed to be solved at that moment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or I would be home racking my brain on something school related and I would look at my phone and you'd be calling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's almost like you knew when you needed to reach out to brainstorm or review something so we could try to
[Kathy Kreatz]: make it better.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's really helped me the last two years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I look up to you as a friend, as a colleague, and I just thank you for all you have done for all of our kids.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you the best of luck in your retirement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Be proud of all the work you've done, the person you are, and the difference you have made for the past 32 years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank both students for coming out this evening and speaking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had a question because I've been seeing some chatter on Facebook about
[Kathy Kreatz]: whether or not we still have a school resource officer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to maybe clear up some confusion on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to help answer that question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: because I went through my notes and I was surprised by the increase in the price and you answered that question also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I had in the notes from the building grounds meeting that it was possible that when we approve this in May that there might have been a possibility of getting a rebate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I kinda, I was just curious about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just want to follow up on a member of McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was asking about the supports while the students are quarantining, because this had come up in a few emails that we got.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are those supports in place right now, like where students can get the Zoom instruction while they're home?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just have one other question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to ask, are the students in all grades getting the frequent mass breaks?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And are they allowed to have water available to drink if they need to have some water?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this goes for all grades.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just had one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at the beginning, it does say like grades three to six, no calculators are allowed for either session.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then grades seven to eight, no calculators are allowed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So my son, he used to have an accommodation to have a calculator present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is, is that something that if a student has an accommodation, you know, for their IEP, can they have the calculator?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just one more, and I know that my son also got like extra time to take the test, because he just required extra time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if that was part of an accommodation, would that be allowed also?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just one final one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I know Mr. Russo was mentioning like the low lights.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just had a question in the past, there was, you know, something that was like an MCAS, like Academy or extra support for students, you know, even it was, it was actually like a program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a grant that was written and was received.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if the students, you know, needed support or assistance,
[Kathy Kreatz]: They could sign up for the program, which was highly encouraged to take the program and they would go in for a Saturday course it was something like eight to like 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was you know it really helped with the skill taking you know just they did a lot of quizzing and just how to go through the questions and you know don't you know forget to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, to answer a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there anything yet, you know, in the works for something like that coming up in, you know, in the, you know, early winter, spring?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm happy to expand upon that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been waiting to, okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, at the last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had laryngitis, so I couldn't really get out what I was trying to say.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I sent an email off to Dave Murphy the next day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to thank Dave Murphy and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hines and whoever else helped with the website update to get the additional information and the links under one button so that it's easy and accessible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You just click on read more, and you can now click on the link to the test and consent form, staff COVID test and consent form,
[Kathy Kreatz]: public schools positive case tracker a guide for understanding covert 19 covert exposure guidance never public schools kindergarten covert 19 prevention protocols and I'm hoping that you know once we have those vaccination status rates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We can also put that link directly under the scene.
[Kathy Kreatz]: button and I already reached out to some families who asked me if I could, you know, put that on the agenda and I couldn't talk that night so it was funny.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they were really happy they tested it and they could open it and I can open it with my iPhone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a little bit different with my computer but I can I can open it with my iPhone I figured it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I told Dave I couldn't do it and you just have to click on it in a certain way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think it's like one of my browsers works on my iPhone, but then it doesn't on the other one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I got it working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I haven't gotten this question yet, but would some of these documents be translated, or how would that work?
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's difficult to find the consent form on the website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know the superintendent includes it in her weekly letter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there any way to put
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like a special button on the website with the link to all the corporate information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The consent form the Testing program frequently asked questions testing program schedule things like that short answer is yes, and it is located, but I think.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Point of information, I think.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, because I think we got, and I might just be misreading some emails, but I think we got an email from Suzy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She made some changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a change after that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've already put that change in front of her.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, all right, so we'll see that the next time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's in regards to the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So how many students are allowed like in the restrooms, the bathrooms at one time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did the number increase?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it one?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it more than one?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So no more than two?
[Kathy Kreatz]: But some restrooms might be a little bit larger, so they- The larger ones, two are permitted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had another question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if a student is going to school and they just forgot their mask, do they get asked before they go in the building or do they go through the building and somebody sees them and says, oh, do you need your mask?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just curious, is there any sort of protocol for that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there are definitely this ample supply of extra masks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We still have them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't make it either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My husband's a lefty, so in his
[Kathy Kreatz]: sister and, you know, his father.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, you know, I have to deal with the obstacles with him and he struggled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And yes, I think I did, you know, have noted that I think it would be I talked to my sister-in-law, my husband to have like a universal desk, that would be, you know, that would be ideal, you know, if that's something we could do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just curious, if we know, you know, not like the necessary the number, but do we have an idea of
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know how common are the, like this, the left hand side desk like do we have them at every school or just remember, I mean Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just having some trouble locating the complete document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When I click on the link I got from Susie, it keeps on bringing me into just my evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't see everybody else's.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Before we began the process, I could see the prior.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it came today, Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah and I like I'm in the Google Sheets share drive and I open it up at 608 and it's just my, it's just my evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, OK, because I think the last time we did it, there was like a tab for all the individual scores, because that's what I saw before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But that's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's just a little bit different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or maybe I'm just not remembering, even though it was just a few months ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But yes, no, I mean, I'm happy to see that the scores are very consistent with what I did for my evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think we're all on the same page with,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the remarkable job that the superintendent has done this school year during the pandemic, you know, transitioning from fully remote over to hybrid, then in-person, then the return to school, the staggered start, and just making sure all the classrooms were ready and safe for all the students and the teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I think
[Kathy Kreatz]: know, with all the different bulletins that Lisa Evangelista sends out, you know, there was just communications, pictures with you at every school, where you were, you know, helping out here, you know, giving out meals, computers, you know, not computers, but the Google Chromebooks, and
[Kathy Kreatz]: You were there when all the students returned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You made sure you went to every classroom at all the different events.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just grateful for your leadership and what a great successful school year that we had despite the pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I look forward to another successful year of learning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you for the presentation, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to say I did watch most of the city council meeting last night until I fell asleep in the middle of the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But everybody did a great job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The questions were great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The answers were great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I'm getting to the email that you sent us this afternoon with the color-coded itemized budgetary
[Kathy Kreatz]: The memo where you have everything shaded in light green or dark green, and then there's some light blue.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to ask if you could touch on that memo that you sent us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I noticed that there were some things here that are still listed as discretionary or necessary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some items are funded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to just give an overview of that memo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much for everything you've done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've been so wonderful to all the students, the staff, the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're just a wonderful, amazing person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you the very best in retiring.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The very best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to thank personally thank the advisory committee for all their hard work in volunteerism.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, you spend, you know, hours just
[Kathy Kreatz]: sorting through all the information and we really appreciate everything you did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do have a question or just something I wanted to share.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was, over the weekend, somebody shared with me that one of the names is Mr. Duck, and I guess there's a proposed bill that is, you know, coming out where the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education
[Kathy Kreatz]: is going to promulgate regulations to ensure that no public school uses athletic name, logo, or mascot, which names refer to or associated with Native Americans, including Native American cultures and specific Native American tribes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure where this bill is right now, but I just wanted to mention it where if this is gonna be coming a regulation,
[Kathy Kreatz]: that you know possibly in the near future if we were to choose a name like that we might have to have another renaming committee in the future.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to share that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank everybody who came out tonight and spoke at the podium or on Zoom and the emails that were sent in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, you know, first off, all of the choices were excellent and deserving of being the name on a school building.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I am in favor of Jean Barry Sutherland.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She served as an educator over 30 years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm one of eight myself, and I had the privilege to have her as one of my teachers at the Waite School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a neighborhood school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was a genuine, dedicated teacher, truly outstanding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My siblings and friends, we would go by to visit her after school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She lived in the neighborhood, and we always wanted to go see Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Barry, and she's
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, be planting outside or taking care of our grass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we'd always say, hi, Miss Barry, and, you know, wave along.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She would stay after school and help with anything that we were struggling with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had difficulty with reading and she would stay after with me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, when she did pass away, I'm part of the Waite School Facebook group, and so many stories were shared about her.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just, you know, everything that was said tonight is all factual, historical,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I still remember going to the Wade School, walking with the neighborhood friends.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just all walked together down the Wade School path to the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, the Medford School is in a better place because of Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Barry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have a unique opportunity to honor an educator and pay respect, especially to a person who walked and led in the school that we're renaming right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was a great leader, honoring Jean would also honor all the educators that rose to the many challenges of the unknown during the pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there's no one more deserving of renaming the school after.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's my thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to share that with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't want to clap either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So please, no claps or anything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jean Barry Sutherland.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I've had the light on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have questions about each of the policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First, I'm going to start with the calendar policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did watch the meeting on YouTube.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I watched it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, I tried to follow it the best I could.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just have concerns about adding three additional no school days to the calendar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, last week we had, you know, the high heat temperature days and I was getting messages from parents saying that I'm not sending my child to school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's too hot to be in the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, this is going to be, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: happening if we're going to having the kids go to school to June 28 June 30th it they're going to be going in the hot hot temperatures adding three more no school days onto the calendar and with all the snow days I mean we don't know in New England it's unpredictable with what the snow days are going to be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do recall one year that my son went to school until June 29th because there were so many snow days and
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really difficult for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in fact, the students were done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They didn't wanna go and some families just went off on their vacations and didn't finish the school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would like to have an opportunity to see what other school districts in the greater Boston area are doing or in our neighboring area to know what the implication is of adding the three additional no school days to the calendar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would like that information
[Kathy Kreatz]: before I was going to make a vote on adding those calendar days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what, you know, that's what I have for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if you want me to go on with the public comment and then I have for the agenda, I have some questions or thoughts for the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you have an answer to that question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do actually.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll think about that, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then in regards to the public comment, so- Mayor, excuse me, could we just discuss one policy at a time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes I have my light on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep so I am you know I was just I guess I'm just having trouble like I feel like the public comment part and the agenda kind of go together and you know I'm just and I I tried watching the meeting I'm just I'm just a little bit confused because if I look at our current agenda we have
[Kathy Kreatz]: On our current agenda, currently what we have in this part of the policy, we have community participation, where it does say any citizen may be given permission to speak at the school committee meetings on any agenda item up to three minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's always been on our agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then we have the public participation emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is this new policy public comment
[Kathy Kreatz]: is that replacing community participation?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You just changed the name of the word.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Instead of saying community participation, it's now gonna be called public comment, but it's the same thing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's where I'm just unsure about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It does, like it sounds like you're separating it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I guess I just want some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So can a resident,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, come, you know, before the podium at any point and just speak about something that's not on the agenda or... That's against the law, no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that... Because that... It doesn't... In the new policy, it doesn't state any item... Okay, it does state any item on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, the only other concern I had was... And I heard this before, a couple of meetings back, was that
[Kathy Kreatz]: We asked for the full Medford Street address.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the concern is that what if a community member is displaced for whatever reason, whether they're homeless or in foster care, and they don't have a Medford resident address, you know, we specifically, you know, states that it must be a Medford Street address.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was something that was brought to my attention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, a while back and I know you were working on these policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, I would appreciate that, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot and myself, we have a resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We haven't got to that point yet on the agenda to have the meeting start at a scheduled time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We heard from community members, all of us, that they would like a designated time to start.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I know that what I've heard from the discussion was that you, during your subcommittee meeting,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, kind of talking about, you know, having the possibility of having a meeting start, you know, maybe five, six flexible with the superintendent, and I'm okay with that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, what we've heard from the community is that, you know, I know that some of the reports that are presented,
[Kathy Kreatz]: might be for us, but some of the community, you know, enjoys, you know, being part of that, you know, discussion and hearing it and, you know, has kind of asked us to have the meeting start.
[Kathy Kreatz]: At seven, which, you know, I tried to kind of go somewhere in the middle between six and seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just kind of came up with the middle time of 630.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've started a couple of our meetings at 630.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I do the goal of all of our meetings is to not have them go, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: hours and hours, you know, that's definitely a goal and I know that that's what this plan is, you know, trying to do is trying to, you know, reduce the amount of time that our meetings are going by having a, you know, a consolidated agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just concerned where now, you know, we're going to have, which, and I'm totally in support of not having the presentations for the public until at, you know, after 7pm or after.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do agree with that so that people who are in work can go home, eat, you know, eat their dinner.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then if they want to either join on Zoom or they're going to come down to the chamber, they can do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's where I am with that because where I didn't, you know, I heard about your, um, I read, I'm sorry, not read, watched on YouTube after I had already done my resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it just was like, you know, the timing was like a coincidence, you know, I'm doing the resolution, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Bandicoot, and then you were having a discussion, you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, so, you know, I'm just, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I am definitely I start work very early.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know the administration does I know the teachers do and, you know, this is like my I don't know like 20th hour right now I'm losing my voice I can't think I'm, I have no voice you know it's just going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and definitely in support of having earlier meetings but at the same time you know it's our duty to serve the public and and that's what has been pointed out to me by you know some of the public that you know we used to do our meetings at seven we every meeting started at seven and then once we had the pandemic
[Kathy Kreatz]: we did kind of cut the, I mean, we started our meetings earlier because we were meeting earlier, but we went just as late.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like we started, some of our meetings started last year at four, but we still met until 11 o'clock at night, you know, even though we, so we, we, we started to trend towards an earlier hour, you know, so I'm wondering if, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: if maybe, like, if we could come up with a set time so that the community knows that we're going to be starting our meetings at a set time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not gonna, you know, my resolution hasn't come up yet, so that's, you know, coming up in the future time, but we are talking about the gender at this time right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So from reading this, I'm not sure, like, what time are the meetings gonna start?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just curious myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are they, you know, it doesn't seem like it's going to be set here for a specific time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and try it and see how the public feels.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna have to abstain.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I'm just not ready to do the vote right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Edward-Vincent, for the updates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I make a motion to go ahead with signed option two for the front entrance of Medford High School to be put up for September 1st, 2021.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is the same sign option that was preferred choice at the subcommittee meeting that we had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just labeled number six during the subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just had more choices, but that was the preferred choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I would like to get the funding to find out what the cost would be before I make the vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can we table this resolution?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to say thank you, Superintendent Edwin Vincent, for your evaluation and all your goals that you sent to us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also want to mention that you do continue to exhibit exceptional instructional leadership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You motivate your team and the teachers and all the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everywhere you go, you walk around with a smile.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You make the students happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's like they're your family.
[Kathy Kreatz]: an extended family.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You make everybody feel warm and comfortable and very personable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to say that those are just a brief summary of my feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a Building and Grounds Subcommittee on May 26.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All the documents I shared with everybody with the Building and Grounds Subcommittee folder.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna just summarize the meeting minutes very briefly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then at the end, I'm gonna read all the motions at once.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we can take one roll call, there were five motions at the meeting, and I'm going to include the minutes of the meeting when I do the motion so that I don't forget because I forgot the last time, unless anybody wants to sever one of the motions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So here's the summary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First we heard from Mr. Chad Fallon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Cormier, electrical teacher, they shared an incredible slide deck to show the projects going on with the cement project at the main entrance of the vocational school, the new graphic art space, the electrical project, an additional interior house built, and the bistro storage unit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Each of the projects was done by students with the CTE shop collaboration, construction, and craft labor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are so many great things happening in the vocational programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We revisited discussion about the signage for the front entrance of Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's difficult to know where the front entrance is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need an official sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did two polls at the meeting and we narrowed it down to a total of the top three signs, number six, seven, and two that were in the presentation for the poll slideshow.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we voted to ask Dr. Cushing to do a poll with the student body
[Kathy Kreatz]: and share the results at the June 14th subcommittee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Agitudin, Tree Warden City of Medford, spoke about all the great projects going on with the Medford High School front entrance at the corner of Winthrop Street.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The construction and craft labor students put down new mulch and low maintenance plants to beautify the front entrance corner of Winthrop Street.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A broken fence section was replaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Several dead trees were removed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A total of 18 trees were planted between last fall and Arbor Day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We received an update from Mister Murphy regarding the high school bathroom project, the RFPs will go out over the next couple of weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The work will start over the summer before the students return in September.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Two solar speed signs were installed at Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, a solar speed sign was installed at the Andrews.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I drove by it before the graduation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're all set for 10 miles per hour.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin and Alicia Hunt, Director of Energy Environment, City of Medford, spoke about the hot water system at Medford High School that must be replaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need this working for mid-August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin also discussed the Curtis Tufts High School boiler.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He also purchased sectional replacements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We voted to go ahead with the labor cost to repair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Medford High School generator is not operational.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It must be replaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We took a vote to replace the Medford High School generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We also voted for Mr. McLaughlin to repair the Medford High School transformer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin shared an informational update on the capital costs associated with the Mervitt High School pool replacement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This was just an informational report that he shared and information's in the building grounds folder shared with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So now I'm gonna read the motions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just gonna read through them all, and then we'll just do one vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion one, motion for Dr. Cushing to do a poll with the student body, the top three sign ideas from Mervitt High School, front entrance, number six, number seven, number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The results from the subcommittee and the student body poll will be shared at our upcoming meeting on June 14th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion number two, to proceed with the replacement of the Merritt High School hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion three, motion to proceed with the labor expense cost to repair the Curtis Tufts High School boiler sectional replacements already purchased.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion four, motion to replace the Merritt High School generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion five, motion to give John McLaughlin the okay to repair the transformer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion six, motion to accept the subcommittee meeting minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, thank you, member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes, I just want to also say thank you and it's just such a pleasure, you know, just seeing all the Facebook posts that we get shared on the blog and just reading the article in the paper on Sunday and my neighbors like look at this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm like I know I know it's just a great things going on my proposed schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know there's just so many great projects.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just unbelievable every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just reading anyone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much both of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to say, first off, I wanted to say thank you very much for all the input and collaboration with the administrators and everybody involved with this together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a really good discussion at the subcommittee meeting, and I really enjoyed getting to participate in the poll and choosing the new design and the look of the new strategic plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just, it's so user-friendly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can click on the link, you just get right in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just, it's really great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I too really liked the glossary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's really helpful and I'm so glad that that's part of it also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to say thank you for all the time and efforts from everybody on this plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just came out really great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, may I just ask a point of information?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to say I've been watching some of the meetings on YouTube, and they are working really hard on trying to get the slideshow ready.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just think we need to give them the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, there's many slides that they were going through one by one,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they were making decisions on the slides and making the amendments similar to the process that we went through when we had to come up with the policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really would appreciate that we can give them the time that they're spending to put this presentation together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't wanna just cut them off in the middle of the work that they're doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're taking it very seriously.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're all very involved and they're taking votes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would really like to hear their presentation
[Kathy Kreatz]: And given the time, they're spending a lot of time on the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we could, please give them the additional time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do think that they're going to be ready if they pick the 14th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't wanna just jump the gun and cut them off in the middle of all the work they've done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They've spent so much time, hours and hours on getting the presentation ready.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Tseng.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, could I just get some clarification?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So next week, the advisory committee is going to present to us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Correct.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're going to show us their slideshow.
[Kathy Kreatz]: we're going to take the vote the same night, or are we going to add another meeting on, because I know that we do have to do one more meeting for the final budget, you know, to accept it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I'm looking for some clarification on- That's what we're debating right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So my question might be similar to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham's question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a very, I mean, I think it might be the same exact question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How will the costs associated with some of the repairs that we discussed in the building and ground subcommittee last Wednesday, you know, we talked about the generator at the high school, the hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I see the transformer is listed in this budget and the Curtis Tufts hot water system or boiler.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think you mentioned at the beginning, I was just trying to type everything down really fast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How will those costs be paid?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when do you think we'll get the appropriation from the municipal government?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess in the past,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And maybe I'm wrong, but I think in the past, we typically had the appropriation, like when we went into the final budget meeting, like we knew what we got for a number, but I could be just not remembering it correctly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I said one follow up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do you think it would be two weeks, three weeks, like where, you know, I'm just curious, like, I mean, you know, we don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I guess we'll just be waiting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Paul.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: John.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it looks like I'm just waiting for Chad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think, Oh, I think I just saw him come in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think what I'll do is I'm just going to start reading the agenda so we can get started.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Please be advised that on Wednesday, May 26 from 5pm to 7pm, there will be a buildings and grounds subcommittee meeting held through remote participation via Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pursuant to Governor Baker's March 12, 2020 order suspending certain provisions of the Open Meeting Law, General Law, Chapter 30A, Section 18 in the Governor's May 15, 2020 order,
[Kathy Kreatz]: imposing strict limitations on the number of people that may gather in one place, this meeting of the Medford School Committee will be held via remote participation to the greatest extent possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Specific information and general guidelines for remote participation by members of the public and or parties with the right and or requirement to attend this meeting can be found on the City of Medford website at www.medfordma.org.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For this meeting, members of the public who wish to listen to watch the meeting may do so accessing the meeting link contained herein.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No in-person attendance of members of the public will be permitted, but every effort will be made to ensure the public can adequately access proceedings in real time via technological means.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the event that we are unable to do so, despite best efforts, we will post on the City of Medford community media websites in audio or video recording transcript and or comprehensive record proceedings as soon as possible after the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The meeting can be viewed through Medford Community Media, Comcast Channel 22, Verizon Channel 43 at 5 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Since the meeting will be held remotely, participants can log or call in by using one of the following links.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Medford Public Schools is inviting you to schedule a meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: backslash J backslash 91360156778, enter media ID number 91360156778, or you can try calling, enter one of the numbers with your mobile phone or landline, 13126266799, that's one of the numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: enter the meeting ID number 913-6015-6778.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Additionally, questions and comments can be submitted during the meeting by emailing kcretz at medford.k12.me.us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my last name is spelled K-R-E-A-T-Z.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So K-K-R-E-A-T-Z at medford.k12.me.us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The email, you must contain your first and last name, your Medford street address, your questions or comments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so we're ready to begin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to, you know, of course, start with welcoming everybody for making it today on this very wonderful, warm, hot day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It seems very summer-like today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so we have a lot of agenda items.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering if I could get maybe one of my subcommittee members could just keep an eye out on the timing to just kind of move this along so that we don't go over the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if, you know, Paulette or Paul, if you could just kind of keep an eye on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we on till 630 or till 7?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what it's posted that way at City Hall and on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so we got the updated invite last night on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, just wanted to make sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Exactly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's why, you know, if we can keep an eye on the time and, you know, I'll do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And feel free to move it along.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't mind at all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so let's start with the roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just kidding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A little too soon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I can see that Mr. Russo is here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Gretz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three present, none absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm ready to begin and I'm going to start.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chad Fallon, Mr. Fallon, he is up first.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to let you take it away, Mr. Fallon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wow, beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van de Koot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I definitely wanted to just say the presentation was phenomenal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And all the projects that are going on with all the different programs, the construction, craft, labor, and the carpentry students working together on the outside project with the cement, that is unbelievable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The landscaping, it looks wonderful and very exciting to hear about the electrical program expansion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the collaboration with the students working on CAD and just that's so interesting that we're gonna be the first to actually be part of wiring and teaching the students how to fish the wires through and to be able to see it, that is so exciting and so unique.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything you just shared today is unbelievable with everything that's already completed at the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just, it's looking beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, would you be able to share the presentation with us via email?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure, I'll do that right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you both.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Comeo, thank you so much for being here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Fallon, for being here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And always enjoy hearing about all the projects going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So next we have Mr. McLaughlin and it's, so agenda number five, Medford High School front entrance, letter, sign, and walkway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at our last meeting, we discussed in great detail that, you know, it was recommended by the superintendent that it's very difficult to know where the front entrance of the school is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need an official main entrance with a sign designating the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I and I know, you know, there's been some talk that, well, we're going to have the visionary committee form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But even in the short time, it's very important that we have an official sign on Mefford High School, you know, to just note Mefford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at our last meeting, we asked John if he can get us estimates and some sign pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we got a collection of we got an estimate, which I will share that
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right now, one moment, I'm just going to get that open.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did share with everybody via the email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to go to the area where I have to just quickly open up the estimate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, while we're doing that, John, did you want to maybe just go over anything while I'm just locating that estimate?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just put the estimate up on the screen right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they're ranging, it looks like from 21,250 and,
[Kathy Kreatz]: up to up to 26,850.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, and that's what I was, I was just waiting for just that conversation to finish up and I'm gonna share the next screen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One moment, let me just click on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have to navigate, I just have a lot open, so I'm going to the area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, I think it's right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, here it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, I just have to, I'm getting it ready here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm ready to do it right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so with the help of Dr. Cushing and Dr. Maurice and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Susie Weiss today, they put together this slide presentation, which I'm gonna show you right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it has the pictures that John McLaughlin shared with all of us in the email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as you can see right now, I'm showing you pictures one and two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you see that okay?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can everybody see that okay?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't want to move along too quickly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just going to pause it right there for a moment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And now let me move on to the next slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can make it a little bit bigger.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me just see if it might be too small.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It can either be 100.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, zoom out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Zoom in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Zoom out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wrong zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, sorry, I think I did the wrong one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Making it smaller zoom in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm getting right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One more time just to make it a little bigger.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, this is much bigger.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, so as you can see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They look very similar, but I think it's just a different font.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So here is number one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is number three and four.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So three and four look very similar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know what the difference is?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that the M is in the white on number three and the Medford, like the Mustang M is in the blue background on number four.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then five has the white background.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, okay, that's good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as part of this, and I was going to ask, I don't know if Dr. Cushing was able to help, but what we were going to do was to do a poll, but I'm not sure if we're able to do something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it was very last minute, so I just wanted to ask Dr. Cushing if that was something that we would be able to do, but if not, it's not a problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just something that I thought of very last minute,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was at a meeting yesterday and we did a poll and on the zoom call and it was, you know, it was interactive and I said, Oh, maybe we could do that for this meeting tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there's number six.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's the blue, it looks, you know, with the Mustang traditional.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Number seven, this is just the standard Mayford High School sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh wow, that's really neat.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And let's go to number eight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this one looks very similar to number seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is a little different, just slightly different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can see the line goes all the way across on number eight and it stops a little bit on number seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I like the old logo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Dr. Cushing has his hand raised, and I just wanted to mention that in this particular project, we're not renaming the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Medford High School doesn't have a sign on the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's no way to find the front of the school because there isn't a sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For some reason, when the school was built,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they just never put a sign up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had discussed this with John McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we're doing today in the committee and what we spoke of in the last meeting was that we would like to have a sign to designate the front entrance of the Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we asked John McLaughlin to get some estimates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So some of the pictures that I shared were a little bit more in detail
[Kathy Kreatz]: but then we could just go with a simpler sign that just simply says Medford High School without a logo and just leave it like that and we could you know once you know the vision committee is formed in the future that sign can be taken off and then put
[Kathy Kreatz]: in another place in the new high school or the new renovated high school at some time in the future, which might not be for 10 or many years later.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to provide that clarification about what we're talking about on this meeting agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But Dr. Cushing, go ahead and then Mr. McLaughlin after that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as part of this demonstration, I asked Dr. Cushing if he could help me with just launching a poll so that we can just get some feedback of preference for a sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was going to do that right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I will click, launch the polling, and then I'm going to screen share again the signs so that everybody can see them again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you could just bear with me, I'm going to click on launch the polling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is just to get some feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ultimately, we'll have to bring this to the whole committee to hear what their thoughts are, but this is just a starting point to get to the next step.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So hold on a moment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to click launch polling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So now I'm going to then click screen share and go back to the pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you, everybody, can you see the poll that's in progress right now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Cushing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sharing the pictures again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can everybody see the pictures?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, perfect, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going through them pretty quickly, but I'm gonna go back up again so you can see them again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just thinking about what I like my reference to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is number six.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I should tell you, this is number seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is number eight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is number nine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Number 10.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is number 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, of course.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here is one and two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They are on the same slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Show one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very similar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a hard time figuring out which is, I think they're both in my, the way I look at it, I can see they look the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And here is four, here is three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three is right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oops, sorry, I went too fast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I clicked off of it, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wait, here we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three has the white background for the logo M.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and then four has the blue background, the logo, and five has the blue logo background with white from Everett High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody need me to show the pictures?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you want me to stop the screen share and everybody can take the poll?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, you may.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, let me get up to one and two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so here is one on top, two on the bottom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks like they are the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, they look to be the same too.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm looking for differences.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, exactly, I think, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, the font, it must be the font.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I do see it now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: what it's like a little bit, you know, a milder font on number, it looks like on number two, a little bit more dramatic on number one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excuse me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then here is three, four, and five.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is number six.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then this is number seven, number eight, number nine,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And number 10, and then, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is just, I think this was an extra one, number 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we just have the 10 of them on the poll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to stop the screen share right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, let me do it again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me do this screen share again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I'm disabled right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Cushing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, here we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, and what did you want to see again, Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Number six, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And here is number six.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, this is number seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody else want to see any
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not hearing anybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to stop the screen share and then I'm going to take the poll myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So did everybody get a chance to take the poll?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Dr. Cushing, I'll need your help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know how to see the results.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'll bring up the screen share again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you show us six and seven?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm going to do the screen share.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Cushing, could I have permission to screen share again?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, so we are just looking at, oops.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oops, OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: six and seven okay so let's take another closer look at number six spend a little time next i'm going to go over to seven so is seven another cut out one seven oh okay uh mr mclaughlin could you answer that question number seven
[Kathy Kreatz]: And here is number six again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody need more time on these pictures or do we want to just proceed with the poll?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to stop the screen share and if everybody wants to take the poll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And did everybody get a chance to take the poll?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that's good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Cushing, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, the reason we did the poll was we wanted to kind of narrow down, you know, what type of sign would be preferable for Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As part of this evening's agenda item, you know, as Dr. Cushing said, is that we want to kind of narrow down a price.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we want to have something very similar to what's showing in number six or possibly seven if we were going to share six and seven with the full committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I'm thinking, you know, in terms of figures, you know, like, let's say
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, 15,000, like, I mean, I would like to hear some feedback from my committee members to put a sign on Medford High School that would be able to be transferable at some time in the future, you know, would that be something that I could, you know, we could possibly, you know, kind of decide on this evening or 15 to 20, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think what what I was trying to say and I'm sorry I didn't mean to say that I'm making the decision, I want to, I want to make a recommendation to the full committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, if we want to definitely move this project into the full committee for them to see both number six and seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I guess, you know, we can give the estimate that we currently have that Mr. McLaughlin has received from I believe it's from white.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was a picture from white lights.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that correct, Mr. McLaughlin?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have the estimate from white lights.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure exactly what
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, estimate goes with number six and white estimate goes with number seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to tell us, Mr. McLaughlin, or would you have to reach out to them and you could get that by the next year?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just kind of- I love that idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I think that's wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, so for, for this, then we, are we, is there like a recommendation to have Dr. Cushing do a poll with the student body with the three top signs and
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, Mr. McLaughlin, would you be able to, um, reach out to, um, you know, the carpentry construction craft labor, Mr. Fallon and, um, the, um, you know, graphic arts to see if it would be something that they would be able to do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, if it's definitely not, then we still have, you know, the sign estimate that we got.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then once we gather all that information, um, you know, we can then
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, have another, I guess, another meeting at another subcommittee meeting to talk about the feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so at this point, we're going to keep this in subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that what I'm hearing from my committee members?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Say that again, Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to keep this item in subcommittee at this time until we get the poll from the student body,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and just clarification from construction and craft labor and graphic arts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that's what I was hearing from some, I mean, some of my committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was, you know, I was asking for, you know, a ballpark figure, but it seems as though, you know, from what I heard was that maybe,
[Kathy Kreatz]: more exploration.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would be amenable to having it ready for the first day of school, if we can do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we can maybe get the polling information from the student body and have it ready for the June 14th meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we could share out the results with the full committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would really like to really move forward with this project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, I would like to make a motion to do something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So motion to get the polling from the student body, Don McLaughlin reach out to just, you know, find out for sure, can construction craft labor do it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes or no, you know, with graphic arts, Mr. Fallon, he did speak already.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he mentioned that it was out of his realm with what they could do, but maybe there are some things that they can do that could cut some costs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Dr. Cushing, do you think it's possible to get the polling done before the June 14 meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we can just, you know, I'd like to just motion that we, um, to, to show the committee members, um, the sign ideas that we've, you know, visited this evening and we can hear their thoughts and we can share the results from the student body poll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we can talk about the pricing estimates that we received, which will, you know, um, and we can go from there and Mr. McLaughlin, anything that you can find out any additional information, you know, please, you know, let me know, reach out to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there a second on that motion to share this with the full committee on our June 14th meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I'm going to take the roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van De Kloet?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have three in the affirmative and zero in the negative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the motion passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we're going to move on to the next.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the next discussion was just john McLaughlin was just going to go over some of the work that they did on the front entrance to just, you know, kind of rejuvenate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin, if you could go over that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, thank you, Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Dr. Cushing, I do have the pictures that John shared with me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would I be able to do the screen share again?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, and so these are the pictures that Mr. McLaughlin sent to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think there's just the one here that I brought up right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's one angle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me go here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks absolutely beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I couldn't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, we're gonna get to that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I'm ahead of myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's one angle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's three just different angles, but it looks so beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And let me just bring up another one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hold on one moment here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, here we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so this is one of the picture here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is all three of them together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so what you can see is there was right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm kind of like with my mouse showing you there was a broken fence and we reached out to the mayor's office and the city engineer's office and I believe the DPW was able to
[Kathy Kreatz]: help assist with that and get that section of the fence broken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was broken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks, Maggie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Aggie, I see you on the call here and I have to, I keep on doing this with the pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wrong picture up again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you, Aggie, for everything that you did to help with this project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know we were emailing and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Montello, I don't know if she's on the call, but she was extremely helpful and she brought this to my attention and she said, there's a very nice, easy, quick way that we can beautify the front entrance corner would be by fixing that broken,
[Kathy Kreatz]: fence section and then just, you know, beautifying it a little bit with some, you know, like with the mulch or with some fresh plants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it looks beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really think it looks absolutely beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When I saw the pictures today, I couldn't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I said, oh my gosh, it looks so nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I was doing a little bit of Googling myself and, you know, because we have, you know, a lot of the same situations that we have at the high school at my house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We don't have much irrigation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it looks nice and I think some low maintenance, natural looking flowers, you know, they look really nice and I'm hoping that we can keep it looking that nice where it's like the front entrance, everybody sees it and it's the first thing they see when they come to our school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm so happy with all the work and all the help that we got on this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. McLaughlin and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Agitudin, thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate all your help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Teamwork.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody have any questions?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Cushing, I saw your hand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead, Mr. Cushing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any more questions?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's 6.17.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Tootie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate you, I'm sorry, Aggie, for being on the call today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate everything that you did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin, thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, yep, so we're gonna be moving on to agenda item number seven, Medford High School restrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we spoke about this over several meetings and the mayor had made a,
[Kathy Kreatz]: resolution on the February meeting that she would like to have the high school bathroom project started.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, where are we with this project?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And did the bathrooms go out for RFP, the ones that we voted on to get rehabilitated go out for RFP?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I do want to make sure that, you know, ideally it would be,
[Kathy Kreatz]: ideal if we could have the work done over the summer while the students aren't in school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I understand there's a lot going on and it's your first budget year and it's just, I can't believe how fast time's flying and it's already the end of the school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I really appreciate if we can get the RFP out as soon as possible so that we can get the work going over the summer months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: PB, Harmon Zuckerman.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're moving on to agenda number eight, the solar speed signs, and I think you already saw a sneak preview of this of the site, because I accidentally shared it, so I'll share it again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So hold on a minute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so Mr. McLaughlin sent me the picture.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the speed sign, it's installed, and I'm sharing the picture now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody have any questions?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Set for 10 miles, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody have any questions for Mr. McLaughlin?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. McLaughlin, really appreciate the pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we're moving on to agenda item number nine, the Medford High School hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this item, we haven't discussed this item yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did find it in the city of Medford's capital improvement plan on page 41.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I asked John McLaughlin if we could get some estimates, which he did get and he shared with us the estimate from Urban and Sons estimate for the hot water system is $171,644.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's, you know, this is something that, you know, we will need to replace.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There currently isn't any hot water in Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're gonna need to definitely replace this before the students return to the high school in September.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Mr. McLaughlin, I'll turn it over to you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you could, you know, maybe just, you know, go over everything with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would appreciate that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I agree, it's something that we have to act on and I'm ready to make a motion that we proceed with the replacement of the Medford High School hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're gonna move this project over to our sub regular meeting for a full committee vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do any of my committee members have any questions for Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Alicia Hunt or Mr. McLaughlin?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I made a motion that we proceed with the replacement of the hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we do need to do is we need to vote on this in subcommittee so that the full committee can vote on it at our next regular meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that they can, you know, so they need our full committee vote to go ahead with the marching orders to replace the hot water system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it is, you know, as Miss Alicia said, it's an emergency.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have to have it replaced by August, mid-August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have to, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I second your motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, yes, go ahead, Mr. Ruscio.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, and I think Mr. Murphy, I'm not sure if you're there, but I know that we don't need to vote to send it out for RFP.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We don't need to do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I believe that we do need to vote to approve the spending of this repair, replacement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but I could be wrong.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so do we, okay, do we need the full committee vote to go ahead with the replacement of the hot water system or can we vote it tonight and then the work can begin before the June 7th meeting as soon as the specifications are available with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hunt's office?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any more questions for Mr. Murphy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we have the motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're just gonna share the vote at an upcoming meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We don't need their approval, so we have the first and second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't recall if we took the roll call vote on this, so please forgive me if I'm forgetting, but I know that I motioned it, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot seconded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll just do the roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so the vote passes three in the affirmative, zero in the negative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so next we are moving on to similar item, but the Curtis Tufts High School boiler.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Mr. McLaughlin, if you wanted to just touch on this and it's not a full repair, it's replacing sectional replacements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think you explained it that
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not the full replacement, just sectional replacements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll let you take it over.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So for the, so, you know, I mean, I'm just gonna,
[Kathy Kreatz]: process we've been following is like I motion to go ahead with the sectional replacements that you need to put in for the Curtis Tufts hot water heater.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so this was more of informational and so yes, you get to go ahead to to go ahead with the labor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Obviously, we need to get that done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do we, you know, a motion to go ahead with the labor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we'll do the roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: okay so the next item oh yes you're at 6 45 just for and we are mr mclaughlin already went over the high school roof which was informational information and we have just two items left i believe we're going to make it because
[Kathy Kreatz]: We already had a preview from Mr. Murphy and Mr. McLaughlin that the RFPs are going out for the generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to just have the discussion with Mr. McLaughlin and the high school transformer, which he also, you know, gave us a preview at the pre-budget meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we've heard about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Mr. McLaughlin, you know, at our
[Kathy Kreatz]: last meeting and a couple meetings before that we've discussed the generator and that it's extremely important it's not operational we've got the estimates it has to be replaced if we lose power there would be no heat electricity etc etc so we all agree that you know we want to go ahead with this project and i don't think we need to have further discussion on this because we've already had discussions over the in this school year
[Kathy Kreatz]: every subcommittee meeting I've been on with the building and ground.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at this time, I just motion that we proceed with replacing Medford High School emergency generator, which we know is already going off RFP at the end of this fiscal year, I think Mr. Murphy said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Caruso.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Vandekloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Critts, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have three in the affirmative, zero in the negative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we have our final item, which is the Medford High School transformer, which we did hear a preview about this at the pre-budget meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the estimate on, this is on a repair, is $19,027.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's, the transformer is out and
[Kathy Kreatz]: And John, could you just touch on that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that it's out and it needs to be repaired, but I don't quite really know what a transformer does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Could you just share that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any questions for Mr. McLaughlin on this?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, you know, just following with the process I've been doing, I recommend and I motion that we go ahead with giving John McLaughlin, Mr. McLaughlin, the okay to repair the transformer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, and I'm going to do roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin, I'm sorry,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know why I said that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so three in the affirmative, zero in the negative, motion passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just gonna, I checked my emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have any emails from anybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did get the email from Mr. Fallon and shared the presentation with, I'll share with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just wanted to note that all the estimates, all the presentations are in the folder that Susie created.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much, Susie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You were extremely helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had so many attachments and,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And pictures and everything was included.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there aren't any further questions, I motion to adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, the meeting has ended.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello, everyone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't make a selection either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to, I don't have any questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to say thank you to everybody for this extensive presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank all the administrators for their time and efforts preparing this draft.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really enjoyed it and I especially enjoyed the interactive piece taking the poll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know that was something that could be done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The presentation was incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody spoke beautifully and just thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I support the extension also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did get to watch the part of the meeting last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was in another meeting, but I got to watch some of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're working very hard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it seems like there might have been some technical difficulties with some of the information and some of the information wasn't available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I do think that they, you know, could use the extension and I approve and I support the extension.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I reached out to Dr. Cushing and Molly Leighton, and everything that Dr. Edward Benson mentioned, that is the information that I received, that there's a restriction for safety and security for the students who are of age
[Kathy Kreatz]: up through 13 and and under should not have access to email that's not monitored consistently um you know so and what molly had had mentioned in the email is that the k-8 issued email accounts are closed and that they should only be used to communicate within the medford um k12.ma.us domain the high school
[Kathy Kreatz]: emails are open and can receive and send emails outside of the Medford Public Schools domain so that students are able to use their school email for related communications such as job applications, colleges, etc.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I agree with the superintendent's recommendation that we shouldn't open up the email for the K through 8.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it should be kept closed down for security reasons.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Similarly, at my work, you know, for some reason, you know, there was some, you know, technical problems going on, and we switched from one email mechanism to another.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was some people's emails were, so to speak, blacklisted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was quite extensive in getting that information repaired.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was also, we could have been in potential danger from getting unnecessary emails that we shouldn't be getting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we were taking precautions at that time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van's good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, you know, just following the guidance from the governor and, you know, seeing that the city council is back in chambers and, you know, we do have the capability to have, you know, a hybrid model where we could have the Zoom on at the same time and have members in chambers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And of course, if members can't come to chambers, they could still join the
[Kathy Kreatz]: meeting via zoom and that's what the city council was doing and um it worked you know very well i watched a couple of meetings and you know um you know the the screen was there you could hear the members who were calling from home and they were visible they were clear and um the audience could still be on zoom and participate um i think it's a good idea now that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, with the reopening and with a lot of the restrictions being lifted, you know, we've been hearing from a lot of community members that they would like to see the school committee back in chambers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll turn it over to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van de Koop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I wanted to know because I wasn't sure how it would be handled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, you know, this was before the code.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know, we had Mr. McLaughlin was was doing our meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I think that, you know, we'll have to work out the technical piece of who is going to cover our meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, when we do go back to chambers and who's going to be covering the meeting and the Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know Mr. Dr. Cushing has been doing the Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I don't know the mechanics and working those details out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was something that, you know, I wanted to bring up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know what details, you know, are going to be covered by whom or whoever.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and then also at the same time if any of the committee members have any like medical reasons why they wouldn't need to wear a mask or they wouldn't be able to wear a mask um would the medical like would that committee member be able to you know remove the mask in the chambers um in between the barricade because i know that they have the glass petitions and um
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, to keep the distance and the glass petitions so that if the committee member is like vaccinated and has difficulty breathing and has a medical note, can that person remove their mask with that or would that person have to go on the remote call?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And would that be the same for being in the committee of the whole, so the subcommittee, if they were in those separate rooms?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know that the governor did say that all of the restrictions would be over once June 15th, like the number of people attending meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yeah, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I didn't take my hand down, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can hear, but when David was talking, it cut out for a little bit and then came back on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't hear Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy, can you hear him now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I lost, I couldn't hear you either, John.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to thank.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First off, I just have a question for the transportation but first off I just wanted to let everybody know that the presentations were excellent and Mr. McLaughlin you did a great job and will those agenda items are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: going to be on the agenda for next week so we can have a discussion next week in the subcommittee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the question I have is also about transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A couple things on that because I pulled up the bulletin because I don't remember it being one mile radius.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I so I pulled up the bulletin on transportation during Kobe 2021, and it says here that every public schools will not transport students on a yellow school, whoever this physical address within two miles of the school they attend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We understand that this change is a significant burdens in, and have always provided transportation that exceeds the regulation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure I have even the right information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy, what he mentioned, I don't have that information either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't recall having a meeting about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot talked about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one more question and it might just be some health information for the upcoming school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Mr. Murphy I'm not sure if you were on yet but it's Patterson was aware of it that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because we, we go back to school before Labor Day, and with the MBTA, the days before Labor Day, the MBTA doesn't operate for the high school students, so there's always been concern
[Kathy Kreatz]: For the first couple of days before Labor Day when the kids are back to school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I, you know, we used to get messages that you know students were waiting at the bus stop the bus wasn't there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They ended up walking were late for school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, in preparation for the upcoming school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: there's been an added yellow school bus that kind of travels some of the most commonly frequent stops to kind of pick up the high school students for those first couple of days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I can't quite remember all the details, but I just wanted to give you the heads up about that, that that has been an ongoing issue.
[Kathy Kreatz]: each year because we start before Labor Day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then right after Labor Day, the MBT buses will run on a regular school schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay, there we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so in regards to the motion that we made this evening, will that be for, Mr. Murphy's going to get us a report that will outline what the various costs would be, like whether or not we're gonna go with yellow buses for all the students in the district, or we're gonna consider purchasing MBTA bus passes for all the students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that the way, is this going to be a proposal that's gonna be ready for us to review at the time of the budget and we can see how it fits into the budget?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I just wanted to comment on everybody's views on the capital fund spending and next week I do have the building and ground subcommittee meeting and several of the capital items that are in the pre-budget this evening are on my agenda for discussion next week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I have communicated with Mr. McLaughlin a few times about getting estimates and
[Kathy Kreatz]: sharing this information with the committee next week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I'm just letting everybody know if you're interested, the subcommittee meeting will be May 26 from five to seven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are several different topics that are on the pre-budget agenda this evening that we'll be talking about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wanted to share that information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Really low.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to thank
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody for their presentations and I just wanted to express that I think it's fantastic with this week long for our each day math Academy at each grade level for six to 12 in August, I just I can't believe it that's just phenomenal and I wanted to know will this Academy be at each school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: or is it going to be centrally located?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious how that was going to work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And is there a particular week that's picked out or will it be, you're still working out the details?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had a question or maybe a recommendation for the technology in terms of consulting the part-time web support and maintenance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just thinking about our CTE students who are in the computer program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there's opportunities for those students to
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe work part-time after school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure if they could get there before school, but I mean, I think that's a great, you know, option.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, some of those students are in there, you know, going into their senior year and they could apply what they've learned and helping out in the support, you know, maintenance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's it for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had a question for Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And before COVID, I did get to tour the site that was going to be the yoga studio and the spin studio.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can see in the narrative that that work was put on hold.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know it's to be determined, but I'd be really excited to see if maybe we would be able to get that going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have been receiving messages from parents who, you know, because of COVID, their students have not had, you know, enough, you know, exercise in their routine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would be nice to have, you know, another available space with different types of exercise.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody adapts to different exercise, like some people like running, some people like yoga, and it would be really nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I hope
[Kathy Kreatz]: that it is something that we could do, hopefully in the longterm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just was happy to see that the athletic teacher, the adaptive PE teacher is in the critical budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know for two years, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perry, you've been trying to get that and I'm just really happy to see it and I hope it stays there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I have the same thoughts as Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that that would be too much in one meeting and a lot to absorb in one meeting for everybody and then to have the public join in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I do recommend that we make a separate date to have the public hearing so that the community can participate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Ruseau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just going to ask, and I know it's something that is additional budgetary priorities.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was getting ready for my upcoming subcommittee meeting with buildings and grounds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just happened to notice under the Curtis Tufts, they have a capillary pier for the boiler.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it does say immediately, most immediately boiler repair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just wondering if that is something that is on the radar, you know, other plans for an emergency repair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think we heard about it at one point.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I was just curious if maybe if Mr. Murphy has any information about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also happen to notice on the same line in the same box, and we talked about it with the elementary schools, was the refillable water stations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm hoping that with the ESSER funds that we'll be able to maybe get those to the districts if the grants don't go through with the on-board.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, and thank you to everybody for all your presentations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'll second that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the reports, and it's been a great presentation so far.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was looking at the details that we got in the draft recommendations for the elementary schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll just start with the elementary schools first.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And something that caught my attention was
[Kathy Kreatz]: under the additional budgetary priorities, it was listed, three of the elementary schools have listed a water filling station.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and procurement of additional playground equipment to coincide with plans for additional organized play and social engagement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So my first question for the water filling station is I think that's a fantastic idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I definitely think it's more sanitary to have water filling stations where they can't go to the bubbler and they need to fill their bottles.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is that something that we are going to get funding from COVID funds and we could wait and we you know to get that funding and then maybe possibly install additional water filling stations at each of the schools in the entire district?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was in the same section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just curious what the additional playground equipment was that coincides with the play and social engagement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's something that stuck out that, is that something that we need to do for the playgrounds that's related to COVID so that the children can play
[Kathy Kreatz]: keeping socially distant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I was just really curious about that where I have my upcoming school committee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that something we should be discussing where, you know, we are in COVID, if everybody's going back to school, I'm just very curious what is the additional playground equipment that would be needed for the social engagement?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was really helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I hope that we can get some of these items so that the children, when they get back, you know, in the fall can, you know, participate in these different rotations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds like a lot of fun and I love that they're arguing less and they're getting more exercise and probably just enjoying their time out and getting the fresh air.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I had a question and I know it's it's a personal priority.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's in regards to the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was something that seemed concerning to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's it's noted here that the method vocational school is not currently part of the cleaning contract.
[Kathy Kreatz]: with the school and they are requesting additional allocation of funds to ensure that all the CTE vocational shop spaces are included.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that seemed concerning to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How are the other classrooms getting cleaned if they're not part of the cleaning contract?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would like that too, Chad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, you know, I really, you know, I hope that we can allocate some additional funding so that we can, we can take care of that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it's very important that we do that, you know, especially during the COVID times, you know, we, we just need to make sure that, you know, the classrooms and the CT shops are getting just, you know, sanitized every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you both.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I just have a follow up question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, just looking at these numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, if the motion that's put forth right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: we're going to account for like let's say the Brooks has $140,000 here and then I go to the um I'm just going to quickly go to the other page one second here 140,000 so are we is this vote to allocate
[Kathy Kreatz]: the total of the funds in all the different categories right now this evening not knowing what the appropriation is for this upcoming school year i guess i'm a little confused or or we already know that the covid mitigation funds are going to come out of the essar and mr murphy is going to identify
[Kathy Kreatz]: what's what we would be able to do so for example like support staff in transportation needs for the extended school day you know that's definitely something i want um i guess i'm a little confused about what we're voting on yeah i think i take the motion to mean that as we move toward may 19th the committee is endorsing the priorities that have been articulated to them this evening and so as we get to may 19th we have greater guidance with regard to the
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chris Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um I just wanted to say that, um.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And sometimes I haven't been able to speak at some of the meetings because.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some other committee members have gone on to their questions, and I'm looking at the clock and I'm looking at the number of residents that want to speak, and I just you know, I just passed on my question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um so I you know, it would be helpful if we all you
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then before they got to ask their second question, it could go through maybe with some of the other members if they had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the past, I have expressed that I'm not in favor of more frequent meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that it sounds like it would be helpful, but I found that
[Kathy Kreatz]: some of the details in the meetings that we have, they're very comprehensive and meeting every week and doing the minutes and posting the meetings, it's going to ultimately take the same amount of time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the administration is just gonna be getting ready for meetings every single week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not in favor of meeting more frequently and adding on more frequent, shorter meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had the same concerns about the date where, you know, going back to school, the first day of school starts, I believe I just saw on the calendar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it was like August 30th or it could be August 31st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm thinking that we're just getting the kids ready to get back in school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's teacher induction week and it just seems the timing, the date, September 1st, seems a little bit too close to the start of school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also wanted to ask the superintendent or the administration,
[Kathy Kreatz]: if they felt that date was doable, you know, even just to get the comprehensive list, which will still maybe take some time where they're working throughout the summer, getting everything ready for back to school and getting the kids back to school, you know, for the beginning of the fall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you want me to do the roll call?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So when I was the secretary, there wasn't really any direction about what to report to the secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was asked each meeting is a report from the secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just felt that I had to do a report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would, when I was doing the bills, I would just take a few select bills that were interesting, educational, supporting our students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would just share
[Kathy Kreatz]: a brief synopsis of a couple of the bills that, you know, were interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sometimes it was, you know, a piece of equipment that I wasn't familiar with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would find out the information about the equipment, but there was no instructions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, because I was asked at every meeting, I just felt that I had to, I had to report out something.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it was never done ever before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I would, I would be okay with it being removed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: from the agenda because, you know, it's just something that it hasn't been done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I mean, it was really just picking and choosing some bills that were interesting to me and I would share it out with the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I read the minutes, I read the abbreviated minutes at the last meeting, and for some reason, I forgot to motion to approve the minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did take a vote on what we voted on during the meeting, and it just flipped my mind.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm making a motion to approve the minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, I don't know what you're talking about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Happy birthday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so when we had our meeting for the building and ground subcommittee meeting, we had voted to
[Kathy Kreatz]: to make sure that the generator in Mifflin High School was a priority item on the upcoming capital improvement plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't see that here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, what I recall from our meeting was that during our discussion about the front entrance, that it was recommended by
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Chris Andreessen, who is an architect that currently, legally, we would either leave it as is or have to do the whole project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we would need to hire, I guess, a structural engineer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that's what he said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just curious about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did anything change?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did we get a new estimate on that work?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just have a follow-up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a different question, but then I'm going to just have another follow-up question regarding the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So while we were talking, I just went back into the notes and it did what Mr. Andreessen said was that in order for the front entrance, we would have to
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would require a structural engineer to do the drawings and then we would get an idea of the scope of the project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So my question is, is that what we're planning to do according to this, this
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, this committee, it being on the agenda for the committee, you know, for the capital improvement plan, are we going to hire a structural engineer to do the drawing so that we can find out the scope of the project for the front entrance?
[Kathy Kreatz]: The other question is separate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So on the city's project list for the capital improvement plan, it lists the Curtis burner, you know, as needing to get replaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if like that was something that that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: is maybe should be on the capital improvement plan where it's on the project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's listed with the amount of money that's, you know, the $816,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me just, I'm just trying to find, I think it's on page 38 of the capital, the city's plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just getting there right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so when I looked at the city's project, it says for schools, the one item for 2021, it says 816,183.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has rehab, MHS bathrooms, replace boiler, ADA accessibility upgrades, security upgrades at Medford High School, repair, replace boiler at CTHS, which is Curtis Tufts High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the community engagement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Community engagement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I just wanted to share probably a few weeks back I talked to a parent about the after school program, and she has a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in order for like so it would be almost like a parent cooperative, where it's possible that you know if parents were on the waiting list because there wasn't enough staff.
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe we could try to, you know, ask some parents if they would be willing to, like, volunteer one day per week and they could work their schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think something similar happens at, like, some of the, you know, the Catholic schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know my parents had a strict day where they had to be at the school to do volunteer work, and then it would
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, kind of offset with the tuition or just they would get volunteer hours and maybe they could put those in at their work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it was a really, really good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I mentioned to the parent, you know, that, you know, she should share that idea with Megan Fidler-Carey, because I think it's a great idea having like
[Kathy Kreatz]: almost like a parent cooperative where, you know, those parents could volunteer their hours and then, you know, have their strict day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I think it would have to be a strict contract where they'd have to, you know, even though it's volunteer, they'd have to sign because they have to be, you know, responsible to be there that day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I, my son volunteered at a similar program, you know, Winchester Hospital, they had a contract for volunteer services, and it was very strict.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you weren't going to be in, you had to find your own replacement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, it's a very good idea, and I just wanted to share that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I know in the past, you know, these particular meetings are very popular with the public and they, you know, they like to join the meetings, be on the live call, so I'm just recommending
[Kathy Kreatz]: not as early as like four o'clock because I know when we had those meeting hours in the past that was very hard and difficult for families to you know to get on the zoom call and I know that the meetings are all recorded and they can watch it at another time but I was thinking more around the 5 30 or 6 o'clock time so that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, that would be, you know, recommended just so that families could join if they're working that day, just an idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I did have one more, and this came up last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So when we got the pre-budget materials,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it happened a lot last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They came the same day as the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I, you know, unfortunately I work in the day and a few other committee members do and I didn't even get a chance to look at the materials before the meeting, and it was a little different because our meetings were at four.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, and they were on the same night as the school committee meeting so you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If, if possible, can we get the materials for the pre budget materials, you know, in advance, you know, at least 24 hours in advance, and then after that meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: at the end of that week, because I can see we have three meetings in one week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at the end of that week, if we can get those materials sent to our homes so that we can have the hard copy, because it was very difficult to keep on going back and forth, back and forth, like, where was that email?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where did that go?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was very, it was very difficult to go back and just look at the information about the pre budget because when it when we got to the budget, you know, you had to like scramble, where did that go where was it put, you know, and, and also maybe have a folder on the shared drive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: specifically to put the pre-budget materials in, you know, like call it, you know, pre-budget materials, and then they would be in there like labeled elementary education, secondary, and so on, so that some colleagues like to have the online version, and for something like this,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I always like to have the printed version, and I don't have a printer that's really good at my house that I can print the materials, so it's challenging for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm not sure if everybody's in the same boat.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, some people don't want paper at all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: even if we could reach out at our next meeting and just ask colleagues how they feel about do they want a printed copy, yes or no?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then maybe only those committee members who need a printed copy can get a printed copy after the meeting's presented at the end of the week so that they have it going into the budget meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to thank Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Stone for sharing that history with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I concur with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Vanderkoot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I'm not ready to make a decision, and I do feel that this process should be a public process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, from many of the community members that I've heard, you know, since June of 2020,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we, we've been waiting for this meeting, so that we could have the public engage and, you know, ask questions and share their opinions, but I do think that that name is, you know, would be is a good suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, once we come up with the plans for choosing the names process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I just wanted to share that information and I just want to ask the mayor a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So mayor, I just had a question because I had a motion, you know, in regards to the two resolutions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Should I hold off and wait till we get to that part of the meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have a motion that is in regards to the entire timeline.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering if I should just read that now and if it could be considered, you know, as a, you know, in a recommendation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It should probably take me about two minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, in my opinion, the deadlines in the meeting dates that were outlined in both resolutions are too tight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The original resolution on June 15 stated specific dates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know July 121 was when the school was going to be renamed, and then there was supposed to be a committee of the whole on September 1, and that's where we are right now we're, we're at the committee of the whole.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And after that, October 1.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the advisory committee was supposed to be formed, and then they would have been meeting October, November, December, January, and they would have submitted a new name to us by January 1st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because we're in the global pandemic, three of the four deadlines were missed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think we should take a step back today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Today marks one year into the coronavirus pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the Commissioner of Education has stated that the schools must be open for full-time in-person learning on April 5, while middle school will be required to do so on April 28.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Our paramount focus should be planning to get the children, teachers, and staff back to school safely to receive the best education, having a budget to accommodate those things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that this should be our priority right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, due to the magnitude of the change, I have recommended a slightly different timeline because in the original resolution, it was stated that the advisory committee should have a term of six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if I go back to the original timeline, the dates were September 1st, October 1st, November, December, January, February.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was the six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So here we are today on April, I'm sorry, not April, March 10th, and we are meeting for the rescheduled September 1st meeting, which was the committee of the whole to plan the structure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're still in the global pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So then the next meeting, which would be the advisory committee would have been formed would be in April this coming April, which was, you know, according to the original resolution was exactly one month after the committee of the whole meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that would bring us to April 10th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I happen to think that April 10th is a little too soon to form the advisory committee, so I was thinking like April 30th would be a good time to form the advisory committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then that would give the advisory committee April, then May, June, July and August are summer months, so we have to exclude those months, September,
[Kathy Kreatz]: October happens to be Italian American Heritage Month, and we celebrate, you know, Columbus Day, which is a federal holiday, so I'm not sure if we want to include that month for the research or not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then that would put our timeline up to November 2021, where the advisory committee would have the full six months, not including the summer months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It could be shorter if the committee wanted to meet during the summer months of July and August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It all depends on whether or not they would meet, which would mean the advisory committee would be coming to us either if we
[Kathy Kreatz]: include the summer months they would be coming to us September to bring the new research name or November to bring the new research name and this would give ample time and you know for the advisory committee to have a thoughtful reflective discussions to thoroughly research a new name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this is the motion that I'm making to extend the timeline that was detailed in the in the
[Kathy Kreatz]: The plan that we're working on right now is still working off of the dates that were in the original resolution, but the three dates have already been missed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's my resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My motion is to extend the timeline detailed in forming the advisory committee and pushing out the dates a little further so that the advisory committee can have six months as detailed in the original resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I just wanted to... Mayor, I just heard from iPhone X, and I guess he was trying to unmute, but he couldn't unmute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to try him again?
[Kathy Kreatz]: member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to amend that date because I know that the superintendent we are meeting tonight and the superintendent does her weekly updates every Friday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So and she's meeting this week in particular, um, with Jesse, you know, to gather the information, um, you know, and provide updates to the community on
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, what's going to be, you know, details for reopening schools and getting the children back into school safely.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I feel as though two days from now is a little too soon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to amend that date to at the earliest if possible, like Monday or the following Friday, so that that's my amendment, either Monday the 15th, I believe, or Friday the 19th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can we just go back up a little bit?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't see some of the screen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, if you could maybe just try to increase it up to 125 maybe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just taking a few more moments to read it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I'll be right there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Take your time, Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I know I'm looking at Paulette's, you know, her, her resolution, and she does have the application form and suggestion will be posted and communicated out to usual mechanisms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: including translations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, that's number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I'm just reading the wrong paragraph.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The application will clearly state that interpretation services will be available to any community member who so requests and technology, laptop, camera, microphone will also be provided.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not seeing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so there, okay, there it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: respond.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I completely agree with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot and I strongly believe that all the names must go to the advisory committee and that committee will thoroughly research those names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're going to have to Google, maybe go to the library, break up into groups,
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I believe the committee is being formed to do, to research all the names, to come up with the best name for our community, and it should be the community which is formed via the committee that's researching these names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I motioned to accept the resolution the way it was put forth by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot, where the advisory committee will be formed and will receive all the names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, maybe we could get a copy of the names so that we can also just review them and be familiar with the names that were submitted as suggested names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But the process of researching and thoroughly
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, reflecting on these names and taking into consideration, you know, everything that's going on in our community, um, just from what we heard this evening, it's, it's very, very important that the community, which is comprised of the advisory committee is part of the process and doing the selection.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, the entire, if we get 300 names, I believe, yes, they should get all of those names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I did motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't hear a second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was a second by member.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't hear it either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, I'm just hold on one minute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, can you hear me because it is work I can hear it on my test.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We can hear you now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're back.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, all right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had, when Paulette had shared her resolution, I reached out to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot to just let her know that I felt the same way, that I don't think it should be exclusive to the CCSR.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it should be open to high school students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I felt the same way, and possibly maybe a backup student, whereas we do have two,
[Kathy Kreatz]: high school students that serve on our committee and they take turns.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what if, because where it is high school and it's the end of the year and there's finals and things like that, it might be busy with the schedules that they might have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I feel like it might, even if we picked two students,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they might not be able to make all the meetings, but they might, you know, one of them might be able to make a meeting and they could, you know, kind of like go back and forth or come up with a schedule that works for both of them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I, I actually think that, you know, we should really amend this to be more of like number two specifically, and we're at the end, you know, having a lottery selection.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I feel that, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: we shouldn't be involved in selecting the applicants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It should those applicants in that section there with the other section at the end should be done via the lottery system where when the applications are sent in there would be a box where somebody could check off
[Kathy Kreatz]: the Racial Equity Task Force, South Medford Community, Medford Historian or Historical Society, CPAC, Italian Alliance, Italian American.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I feel like
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the lottery is the most equitable process where it's not going to be a human, you know, looking at that application.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There could be room for bias making those selections, you know, to that advisory committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just, I felt as though there needs to be
[Kathy Kreatz]: a larger number for the lottery selection and in order to do that we would you know have to remove the school committee making a selection for the applicants similar to what we do for the middle school lottery selection where um where the students are put into a lottery and it's it's selected you know via the lottery selection process i think that's worth um
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would just like to make a point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There is still potential room for some bias in the process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In order to make it equitable, I feel as though removing the school committee from the process is the most equitable way to ensure it's a diverse committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if it's not going to be done via the lottery, there has to be
[Kathy Kreatz]: Somebody that's overseeing or ensuring that it's a diverse committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll just give an example um, we just recently in september disbanded the vision committee because it wasn't a diverse committee, so That's something that could happen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're all going to be going through these applications and We have all the same applications and you know
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, there's room for human error, making that selection, you know, there's room for emotion, making that selection, you know, choosing that candidate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just think, you know, it should be, if it's not gonna be done via the lottery, then I agree with the mayor, it would be part of the administration team, you know, to review the applications.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would be okay with that resolution, what's proposed by the mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just really think that there is too much room for bias in the process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would be okay if we went through and we gave our top 10 and then the final decision would come from the administration so that, you know, I didn't handpick, you know, X, Y, Z, you know, to fit my, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, what I wanted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, you know, I just really, and I want to have a diverse committee because we recently just disbanded the visionary committee and we haven't begun that process to start the application process for that committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just feel it's really important that we get a diverse group of candidates, equitable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, I wanted to get some clarification, because I thought Mr. Russo said that we couldn't do a lottery as per our policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was going to ask, I thought we couldn't do a lottery, but then I'm seeing the lottery is still in the application process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, we can take it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I agree to the lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that maybe one member, one, the school committee would select one applicant each and then the additional applicants would then go into the lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that might be maybe a total of six lottery and each school committee member picking an applicant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's going to be closer to 20 because we are giving them such a big task to do all the research.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And based on the current timeline, I've already put my resolution out there for extending the timeline so that they can do the thoughtful discussions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The way that it's detailed now in such a short amount of time, I think that there would need to be additional members to do the additional research with, you know, to thoroughly, you know, pick those names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Kathy Kreatz is trying to remember.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to chime in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I do like the idea of having even a survey for the community so that they can give us some feedback once we have the three final names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's really important that we involve the community somehow in this process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that's a great idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I like the idea of the students at the same time, I just wanna make sure that we're involving the entire community, you know, and including the students in the community in the process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just something that it's just such a, you know, big responsibility.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just getting exhausted, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I'm just really uncomfortable and I wouldn't be able to approve the date, the May 24th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just feel that it's too rushed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I mentioned that at the beginning of the meeting when I, you know, detailed the timeline, this advisory committee in the resolution that was originally stated was supposed to have a term of six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So now we're condensing the six months into about eight weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I'm just, I mean, I would ask my committee members if they would consider changing that date
[Kathy Kreatz]: I still think it's too soon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I mean, I read the original resolutions that were presented in June, and it clearly stated the advisory committee will have a six-month term so that, you know, in my opinion, that would be ample time for the committee to
[Kathy Kreatz]: to have thoughtful, reflective discussions, get the survey results, read the survey results, thoroughly research for the new name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: this is, you know, we're rushing to get the new name on May 24th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we're not, in this particular meeting, we're not changing the vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I get that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just, you know, I just think it's too short of a timeframe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That that's my opinion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not in favor of a temporary name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're forming this advisory committee so that they can come up with a name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just don't understand some of that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's not in the resolution that I went back to the original resolution and it didn't state that
[Kathy Kreatz]: The name would have to take on a temporary name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If a name wasn't decided by July 1 in keeping in mind that this is a pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And all the deadlines that occurred all year everywhere, everything changed and got slid and extended and delayed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm just, you know, I wouldn't be happy with the way that the resolution in this section is written with the strict timeframe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's my opinion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I agree with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've already stated that I think the timeline, you know, the date, all the other dates were missed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they were missed because we're in a pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the original resolution, it does say
[Kathy Kreatz]: that the advisory committee will have six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this time here, May 24th, that's not six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're gonna keep to the July 1st deadline, but we're gonna just remove the six months that was originally in the resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that was in the resolution and so was the July 1st date, but we're gonna skip the six months and we're just gonna keep the July 1st
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just not, I mean, it's just not right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not fair, it's not equitable, it's not reasonable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's how I feel like a strong no for me on May 24th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's my strong no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've already provided my timeline and that wasn't second, so that's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm moving on from that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I really think that
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, having this decision on July 1 is rushed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I even suggested in the timeline that I put forth at the beginning of the meeting that
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we don't count the summer dates, and if the advisory committee were to meet in summer, brings us to September 1st, they would be coming to us with a recommended new name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even if they have a couple, like have one meeting in July, one meeting in August, but they still have April, May, June, July, August, and they could come to us with a new name in September.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The way that I read the resolution, it didn't make sense to me that the name had to, you know, transition over immediately on July 1st, where we didn't even follow all the other dates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We didn't, we missed all those other dates and that didn't matter to anybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It didn't matter that we missed all those dates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, sorry, I couldn't get to it, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm also going to summarize my meeting minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I've condensed them to just about two pages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll be brief, as can be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a building and grounds meeting on March 3rd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One of the topics we discussed was the high school generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I shared the specs with everybody via email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We received the specs from Gone Green.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The total estimate is 186,925.
[Kathy Kreatz]: John McLaughlin informed the committee, it's very important to replace the generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were two generators at Medford High School, one in the front and one in the back of the building.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The one on the vocational side is the one that failed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we had a power event in the winter, we could have problems with the pipes freezing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We got an update from John McLaughlin after the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He shared an email with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He spoke to the contractor about the life expectancy of the spec that we got for the new generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's going to be 20 years with proper maintenance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy informed us he met with procurement officials last week regarding the need to go through bidding process for the repairs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The generator is a capital expense and not an operating cost.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot expressed, while we have to struggle with priorities, we don't want to be in a situation where the pipes could burst.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We want to avoid the huge emergency costs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a vote taken on the floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I motioned to consider the generator as a high priority item at the upcoming Committee of the Whole meeting on March 22nd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was seconded by Paulette Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All in favor in the motion passed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I just wanted to know, do we need to take that motion on the floor this evening or will that be okay for the Committee of the Whole meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can take the vote on the floor, just to confirm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I motion to consider the generator as a high priority item at the upcoming committee of the whole meeting on March 22nd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After we revisited the discussion about the high school entrance there with three separate projects we talked about ramp at the front of the high school sign in beautification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a well thought discussion about the high school ramp.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everyone in attendance shared feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The project is a capital project and it will require structural engineer to do the drawings to get an idea of the scope of the project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to make the ramp ADA compliant is very expensive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Cles Andreessen, who is an architect and parent, let us know legally we either leave it as is or do the whole project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy stated it would be best if we brought forth a suite of recommendations, including the front entrance, the generator, and more to the committee to discuss.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, this may need authorization from the city on some improvements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next, we discussed a sign for the Merritt High School entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Last year, Chris Donovan, parent, shared an idea of a picture idea we had for a sign of the 50th birthday celebration.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mentioned it would be a great idea if the vocational students could assist with the sign in either one of the shops, metal fabrication or robotic shop, with their laser plasma cutter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Cushing shared another idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: With Groton-Dunstable, they have a mesh banner that would be cost-effective for us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would beautify the building in the short term and allow us to continue with the improvement of the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Edouard-Maurice remarked, with so much concrete, there are opportunities to add enhancements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She pointed out it's difficult to know where the front of the school is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Whatever the wording could be, we could work with the vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The picture that was shared does show a true front entrance and official main entrance, even if it would be the short time, a new sign landscaping would be the superintendent's recommended priority.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Edward Maurice did a check-in with Mr. Fallon while we were in the meeting, and the vocational student shops do have a machine that would make the sign doable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Fallon will figure out a cost and give us an estimate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was another vote taken on the floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Van der Kloot motioned to contact Mr. Fallon to get a price on these improvements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, she would like to get the cost estimate of the banner for the front.
[Kathy Kreatz]: exploring the front entranceway banner.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On the side building, it's behind the theater where that concrete section expands.
[Kathy Kreatz]: At this time, I am making that motion on the floor this evening so that we can put those estimates forth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you please restate the motion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot motioned to contact principal Chad Fallon to get a price estimate on the improvements for the lettering on the front of the front entrance of the school and also to get a cost estimate on the banner for the front of the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're thinking, you know, the banner, if we could get an estimate on the banner for the cement and a banner for the front entrance, just so that we can do a cost comparison.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, some point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know if I read it clearly, but so the first part of the motion was to contact Principal Fallon to ask if he could get an estimate on the lettering that was in the picture that I shared.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It wouldn't be like, we haven't decided on the lettering and what's gonna go on the lettering,
[Kathy Kreatz]: whether it be Medford High School or Mustang Pride.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was just an idea that was shared with me because I'm the chairperson of the Building and Ground Subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That particular picture had lettering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looked like it was made out of sheet metal and the equipment that the two shops that I had mentioned, which was the robotics and automation and the metal fabrication shops,
[Kathy Kreatz]: They do have a laser and a plasma cutter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so those two machines, I believe, it might be possible for the vocational shops and or teachers and students possibly to create that lettering sign which would go on the
[Kathy Kreatz]: front of the front entrance high school where you go up on the ramp.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then the idea that Mr. Cushing was sharing with us had to do with the large concrete section that is behind the Caron Theater.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So all that concrete to brighten up that area
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Cushing shared an idea of having a banner that might look nice, you know, to cover up the concrete and it might have, you know, we just talked about ideas like having Mustangs running or maybe Mustang Pride could go there with some Mustangs and then the lettering would be on the front of the school with maybe Medford High School so that there's a distinct
[Kathy Kreatz]: front entrance and um I did I did ask about this um the lettering you know would be I believe would be able to take him down if we were to you know have either the vocational students do it or an outside company and that lettering could be then put on you know
[Kathy Kreatz]: a renovation in another area, if at some time, maybe five to 10 years from now, there is a full renovation, but the structure of the building itself is sound, so they might keep the original structure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do think that the estimates are for getting prices on those so that at our next meeting, we can talk about the next part of the plan,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, did you hear me?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, I'll say it again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you to all the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All the poems were beautifully written and inspirational.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're all talented poets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Incredible job to everyone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, my dog was barking, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I was just trying to unmute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so, you know, I would like to ask my colleagues, you know, if they would consider, respectfully consider, you know, in advance of the meeting, reviewing the timeline that has been put forth in both resolutions and consider expanding the dates
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just went back and I read the original resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the, the, the original resolution states, be it resolved that the Christopher Columbus elementary school be renamed effective July one 2021 in advisory committee shall be created.
[Kathy Kreatz]: with a term of six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the advisory committee was supposed to have six months beginning no later than October 1st and provide a recommendation to the committee no later than February 1st, 2021.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So in that original resolution, it was given ample time to come up with a new name, have that committee formed,
[Kathy Kreatz]: have a new name discussed, thoroughly vetted, and that the school committee would reconvene the Committee of the Whole before September 1st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Now, I'm just pointing out the dates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: all of those dates have already been passed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We missed all those deadline dates and we missed all those deadline dates because we're in a pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And as we've seen in the pandemic, all the dates had to slide for everything we were doing, everywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just all the dates had to slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I am just respectfully asking if my colleagues could think,
[Kathy Kreatz]: In preparation of Wednesday's meeting, you know if we can maybe try to come up with a different timeline, so that there can be a thoughtful respective.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry not respective reflective discussions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for that advisory committee once they're formed to thoroughly research a new name, have public meetings, listening sessions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I feel like we're rushing this to make that deadline.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we're still in a pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just feel that it's such an enormous, you know, task and it just, it requires time, thoughtful time consideration in hearing from all community members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just had one more, because I've been hearing, you know, over the last couple of days, and I did not read it in the original resolution, but I've been hearing that if
[Kathy Kreatz]: The deadline wasn't met by July 1 2021 that the Columbus school would would then be renamed the no name school, but I'm not seeing that in the original resolution so I'm just, you know, I'm just wondering, you know, is that something that I'm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: missing or overlooking if um one of the committee members who wrote that resolution if you could let us know because I have been hearing a lot about that and I just want to you know kind of get an answer on that because I don't know and I didn't know anything about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so that just might have been something that got kind of overheard somewhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Somewhere, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, all right, I just wanted to confirm that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it is five o'clock I have we have Paul.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think Paul's here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, there he is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I see Paulette and John's there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know David Murphy is going to be joining the call, but I think he's joining us a little later, Dr. Maurice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, and his item is the last agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it's fine, we should begin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's five o'clock.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what I'll do is I'm gonna start reading the agenda, the long agenda, the beginning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so please be advised that on Wednesday, March 3rd, from 5 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to 6.30 p.m., there will be a building and ground subcommittee meeting held through remote participation via Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pursuant to Governor Baker's March 12, 2020 order suspending certain provisions of the Open Meeting Law, General Law 30A-18, and the Governor's March 15, 2020 order imposing strict limitations on the number of people that may gather in one place, this meeting of the Member School Committee will be conducted via remote participation to the greatest extent possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Specific information in the general guideline for participation by members of the public and or parties
[Kathy Kreatz]: with a right and a requirement to attend this meeting can be found on the City of Medford website at www.medfordma.org.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For this meeting, members of the public who wish to listen or watch the meeting may do so accessing the link contained herein.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No in-person attendance of the members of the public will be permitted, but every effort will be made to ensure that the public can adequately access the proceedings in real time via technological means.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the event that we are unable to do so, despite best efforts, we will post on the City of Medford Community Media website an audio or video recording, transcript, or other comprehensive record of proceedings as soon as possible after the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The meeting can be viewed via Medford Community Media on Comcast Channel 22 and Verizon Channel 43 at 5 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Since the meeting will be held remotely, participants can log or call in by using the following link or call-in number.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can join by typing in https://mps02155-org.zzoom.us, backslash j, backslash 93458270363.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or you can call this number 131-262-66799 and type in the meeting ID number 934-582-70363.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Additionally, questions or comments can be submitted during the meeting by emailing kcretz at medford.k12.ma.us, and that's spelled K-R-E-A-T-Z.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Those submitting must include the following information, your first name and last name, your Medford Street address, your question or comment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we'll take the roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Paulette, you're no longer the treasurer, so I'll start with the roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have, oh, sorry, I have my, oh, here it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like looking for my attendance list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So three present, zero absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, that's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And before I do begin, would somebody want to just keep an eye on the time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know a lot of people have been doing great with their meetings and their time, and I just lose track of time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I've been going over.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let's keep an eye on the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Anybody want to keep it, you know, just, you know, tune me in and just say, Kathy, we're getting a little into this topic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't mind.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, and I see Mr. Murphy, thank you, Mr. Murphy, I can see that you're, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, so the meeting objective is to update the community on projects at the Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the first item on the agenda is the Merritt High School generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did put together some notes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to open them up right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and I went back to our last meeting because we did have so this this meeting is our we're revisiting some of the items that were on our last meeting and um, So we did talk about the generator and I was able to share the estimate and the specs with both committee members And john mclaughlin shared them with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, i'm not sure if you want me to do a screen share Um, or did everybody get a chance to look at that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did they did they get those the specs?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, so the cost is, and I'm just going to shrink this down one second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to shrink it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, so the cost, and just move this over.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, OK, it's moved on the wrong side.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The cost is, oh, OK, one moment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I have it, and I saved it here. $128,675.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the question I have, John, is, you know, I just have some general questions and I can be able to just answer them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what I didn't know is, you know, I looked at the draft of the capital improvement plan and I noticed that the generator wasn't on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, you know, what you have for information, you know, maybe could you explain a little bit about, you know, how important
[Kathy Kreatz]: replacing the generator is and what does the generator do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's, that's excellent, because that's very important.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so what
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, okay, the other question I had was does that cost the 128 675 does that include the labor to install and remove the old generator or are we going to incur additional costs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And would it be a problem to keep the old generator, you know, in the building, you know, is there any, you know, issues that might occur if, if it was left there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, and then, oh, my colleagues.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll let, uh, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van de Kool, did you have any questions?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I hope I didn't miss your hand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me see, are you muted?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We can't hear you, Paulette.
[Kathy Kreatz]: can you unmute?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Almost 200K.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Griffey, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo, I saw your hand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so is you know, I I was thinking of making a motion to you know, have this you know added As for discussion as a high priority item at the upcoming capital improvement plan meeting To be shared with the other committee members so that you know when we're meeting we can You know because we're meeting to make the priorities.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What are we going to use that capital money for?
[Kathy Kreatz]: um You know is I think that's something that we should do
[Kathy Kreatz]: at this point is to have it added as a high priority item at the upcoming meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three in favor and zero opposed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The motion passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, let me just do this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much mayor for attending.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really appreciate everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And tell the other members of the other committee, good luck with your meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we're moving on to the next agenda item, which is the Medford High School front entrance, which I kind of have it broken down into just different little sections.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We are going to talk about the front entrance, the ramp, making that ADA compliant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're also going to talk about the front entrance, the sign that we were just talking about, and beautification, some landscaping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we'll start with
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where we left off was we met about the front entrance in November, and at this meeting we are revisiting the front end discussion, and I know how very busy, Mr. McLaughlin was after our last subcommittee meeting, getting all the costumes ready to welcome all the students back in January.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I understand we didn't really get to do much between November and now so we're meeting again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're going to be talking about some of the same things as the mayor just mentioned she's very interested in fixing the ramp in the front end just a method high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We understand that there's going to be a vision committee put in place.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, the ramp in the front high school is not ADA compliant, and it needs to be fixed and it's unsafe to wait, you know, the five or so many years until we get that renovation plan, we need to make those changes now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So currently it's utility ramp.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's, it's, you know, listed in the capital improvement plan for the draft for the city.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's ADA accessibility upgrades that are part of that plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we can, you know, potentially use the free cash to fix that entrance and.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We, and just to give a little background, we had Mr. Kless Anderson, who's also on the call today, and we had Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Carolyn Montello, and she's also on the call today, and both those parents were very, they were very involved in the process, providing feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Kless Anderson is an architect, and he provided us with a design plan and great ideas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Montello, she had wonderful ideas, and
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we shared that at the last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can screen share, if anybody wants to see it, that design plan again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just let me know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have it saved on my computer, just if you want to get another look at it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I believe, did I email it to everybody?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't remember if I did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Not this time around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you want me to do a quick screen share of just the front entrance?
[Kathy Kreatz]: sure okay so let me open it up one moment i'll open it up first um sorry don't mind i'm just looking around i put it on my desktop to get there i have too many things open okay front entrance design okay hold on
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, now let me go back to the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry, I'm not really good at the screen sharing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have the screen, and now I'm trying to get back to Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ah, OK, one minute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It shrunk down, my Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, there we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maximize, OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, OK, so now I have the Zoom back, screen share.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, screen, let me see if that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, click on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, can you see it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, I did it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's like the first time I've done it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm serious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so there it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just an absolutely beautiful design.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, and I did, you know, get in touch with Mr. Andreessen, you know, when we spoke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I have him on the call today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also have Mr. McLaughlin, you know, we communicated about this and I told him, you know, what the plans are is, you know, that, you know, we understand that there's gonna be a lot of different projects and we can't do everything at once.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, so we have the ramp and then we have the brick work and then there's the renovation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this is gonna be like a phase project where
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe the first phase will be the ramp, making it ADA compliant, getting a nice sign for the front of the school, and doing some landscaping at the front entrance, and then maybe at the bottom at the driveway area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll let Mr. McLaughlin have a few words to say, and then Mr. Andreessen, if you would like to also say some things, please do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I am going to do that right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you know what happened is I have a mini Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm afraid I'm going to click out of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know how it happened, but I actually have a little panel of Zoom, but I don't have the, shoot, let me see here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me go here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do have that question you got to see it too yes so that is a question that I did have you know and I that's one of my questions I had if we were to convert that ramp to an ADA compliant ramp would vehicles be able to drive on it I know that the um the ban uses that ramp and I think that ramp might be used for
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe things being delivered to the school in the front entrance that way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that would be a question maybe for Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know the interest of that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like if we were to convert a utility ramp into an ADA ramp, would it be vehicle?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, you may.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. McLaughlin, I think you froze.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You froze for a little bit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We didn't hear what you said, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then Mr. Andreessen would like to maybe try to answer that question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead, Mr. Andreessen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, we can.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's excellent, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Any other questions on that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the other question I had was, I know at our last meeting
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we wanted to know if you'd be able to approach a site contractor or Mason.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that it was just very busy times.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're trying to get the schools open up to get the kids back in for the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, that we didn't get to do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, as part of this process, we do need an estimate to go to the next step.
[Kathy Kreatz]: which is to, you know, you know, cause as part of the capital improvement meeting that we have coming up on the 22nd, we'll need some sort of an estimate to bring forth to the other committee members so that they have the, you know, all the figures that, you know, we have to add up to, you know, that free cash amount of the $816,000, you know, or so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering, John, would it be possible, because I was thinking of making a motion to get an estimate for the front entrance to make that ramp ADA compliant to get that estimate on or before that capital improvement plan meeting on the 22nd?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Mr. Andreessen, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, okay, Mr. Russo, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm still thinking on this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if we had a goal and our goal was to make that front entrance ramp, an ADA compliance ramp, and we had to put together a plan in this committee,
[Kathy Kreatz]: What would we need to decide like do we need to decide that one, we need that curb cut out so that you know coming from the parking lot over to the front entrance there's going to be the curb cut out so that the person can go straight across and go up, you know, up the front entrance up the ramp.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In and I know that it would you know, it would require, you know costs and fees Is there any way to get an estimate on?
[Kathy Kreatz]: something like that if we had a plan that you know, because definitely You know, it's one of the issue, you know, one of the things that we do want to get fixed is You know making that ramp ada compliant and
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I think, you know, we had a discussion about it in November and we're discussing it again, but I kind of want to try to move it along to the next level, which is going to the next step.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just trying to think the next step would be coming up with a plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What do we actually want?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I think what I'm hearing is that we do actually want to have the whole, you know, the parking spaces, the curb cutout,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, both coming from the parking lot and then over to the curbing, and then the handicap ramp, you know, getting that done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, or am I just kind of going off too far.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Anybody want to chime in any committee members or anybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't mind at all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have four dogs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy, sorry, I'm actually, yeah, please feel free to do that anytime, because I'm typing a little new.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's okay, go ahead, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van De Koot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, so that photo that was the next as part of the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was what I was going to talk about next was last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: During the beautification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Chris Christopher Donovan he's a parent community member and photographer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He had shared that picture with us the day after the beautification day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's a photographer, so he did the Photoshop and he did the front entrance picture idea that he had for the front entrance that he shared with me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When we had originally seen it, it was discussed a while back before COVID shutdown that that would be a really nice idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for the 50th birthday celebration for the high school to get a new sign.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And actually, I had an idea, and I even talked to my son, because he was in robotics and automation engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I showed it to him, and he said that it's very possible that it's something that could be done easily with a laser cutter or plasma cutter, possibly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Has everybody seen the photo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I can do is I can screen share it right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, definitely.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me do that right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm going to just give everybody a friendly reminder.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're getting close on the time, and it's getting up there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have to quickly move through some other things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let me get there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's go to my desktop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's on my desktop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, here it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to open it up right now and go back to Zoom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, let me do screen share.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so can everybody see that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so that is, like, this is just a very quick picture.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, it's just a, you know, I mean, this wouldn't be the final version, you know, if, you know, we were gonna choose something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I did, you know, get in touch with Mr. Donovan and he's actually, he might be unavailable, you know, for this meeting, but, you know, he did do some estimates on his own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know, I'm just looking at it a thousand dollars and landscaping up front would be new cool.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it would be nice if the vocational students could do it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, we could maybe reach out to Mr. Fallon and ask him if he could inquire with the
[Kathy Kreatz]: metal fab and the robotics and automation teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If it is something that could be done, you know, via the two programs, I know that I, right before the shutdown, I got to see the robotics automation engineering, and they just have, they have the laser cutter, the plasma cutter, everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Go ahead, Mr. Cushing, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I can't hear you, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna stop the screen share.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, let me see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you wanna go ahead, Mr. Cush?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, there you go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate that idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I liked that idea a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, I really liked that idea and what do my committee members think?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Maurice, go ahead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Dr. Maurice and then Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I second that motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three in favor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the next part of it is just very briefly is just doing some beautification in landscaping, Mr. McLaughlin I know it's going to be spring soon and you know hopefully we're going to see all the snows, starting to melt.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, could you hire a landscaper to maybe help us, you know, get some nice shrubbery that doesn't require a lot of maintenance, that will look nice, that's, you know, not going to be blocking anything at the front front where you come up, you know, from from Winthrop Street, you know, right there in that little corner where the, you know, the monument is, and then right at the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, where it's like we're going into spring, this is something that we would be doing, you know, anyways.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I, you know, I wanted to make a motion that we, um, do some landscaping and some, you know, shrubbery in, yes, Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy, we need to move on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, we do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so if you could take it under advisement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, take it under advisement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so John McLaughlin, you're up with the speed signs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very brief.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did they arrive?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you tell us when they will be installed?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I remember is, do you remember Mr. Russo, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van de Koot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I believe it was just in between.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, to slow everybody down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we are moving on to the security camera updates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Murphy, thank you for waiting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any more questions?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does anybody have any more questions for Mr. Murphy or Mr. McLaughlin?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so just to, you know, I just wanna keep track of, so I think what I have here is that, you know, for the capital improvement meeting, maybe you'll put together some sort of a little package that you'll bring to go over the front entrance and the security updates and the emergency generator.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and you'll take under consideration any extra funds, some landscaping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we do have, you know, Mr. Cushing's going to look into the banner and maybe Mr. McLaughlin and superintendent are gonna reach out to Mr. Fallon just to inquire if it's possible or not, if the vocational students could do something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think that's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, that's excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Fallon, if you're listening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I think that covers everything and we are going to end on time, even though we were getting a little late, but we are going to end on time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there a motion to adjourn?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to adjourn?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have motion three in favor of adjourning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're adjourning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is 6.20 PM.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want everybody to have a great night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all for coming, Mr. Andreessen, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right, we should be good to go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for providing us with this nice plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I think this is, it looks good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The questions look good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, and I do appreciate Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin reaching out to the mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that would be helpful information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did attend that meeting at the library and we were split up into groups and we did talk a little bit about, you know, strategic plan education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was like a little bit of a mix so that I do remember that meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so when we,
[Kathy Kreatz]: When we begin the process to invite people to this the roundtable meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will there be like a little, like a little background like with the current mission statement, what it is currently, you know what's the current vision statement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, and maybe a little background with the meeting that was at the library, just a brief, you know, summary so that when it's shared, people know, you know, well, this is what this meeting is about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, we're going to be reviewing the mission statement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So maybe they can come to the meeting ready with, you know, ideas and questions, you know, or suggestions or feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wondering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I think that's a great idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hey, Kathy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if we were going to have the round table meetings, would we, instead of having the communication stakeholder engagement subcommittee meeting, could that be that meeting time, you know, change for one of the round table meetings?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I just had that thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What about not being too late, but maybe 6 to 7.30, so it's not 7 to 8.30, because then we're getting late.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know 5 to 6.30, that's kind of the late hour, but then people want to eat and everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it gets tricky when it starts at seven, because then we're definitely going into the later hour, but I'm not sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What does everybody else think?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have anything on those days, so yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just had the communication one, but it's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Whatever one you choose and just let me know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, could I go after member Rousseau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First, I just want to thank my fellow committee members, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin and Mr. Russo for all their hard work collecting and compiling the ratings and feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just, I won't go on because she has all the feedback, but I just want to reiterate what's in my feedback is that Dr. Edward Benson, you have done a remarkable job as superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You got us through the pandemic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're still transitioning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we're, you know, we're doing very well compared to some of our other fellow, you know, communities.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I couldn't be prouder to have you as our superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I thank you for your leadership, your friendship, and I look forward to another successful year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you hear me?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I actually have a building and ground subcommittee meeting scheduled for next week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we were going to have this on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I saw it as a resolution on tonight's meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So before tonight's meeting, John and I, he had sent me the specs and I believe everything is ready to go over to or for us to take a vote to send it over to procurement so they can send it to the specs to go out for bid so that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, we can get the cost and then we'll know more about how many bathrooms we would be able to do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure, you know, I was thinking that maybe this evening, we would take a vote to send the RFP, like the specs out to go out for RFP this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I have the specs that John forwarded to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can share them with Susie and she can send them to everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That'd be great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, member credits.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share that what I've noticed over the last several subcommittee meetings is keeping to the timeframe that's on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to applaud school committee members, fellow school committee members for adhering to their schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to try to make my meeting on time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I went like a couple of minutes over on my meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's something, cause we do value everybody's time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to congratulate all of you for doing a good job at that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, no, no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All the meetings have been, you know, kept it like they haven't been going until the midnight hour.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I meant both.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna knock on wood right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to say thank you to all the students for your presentation tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They were all incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to mention that each and every project is so extraordinary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All your projects are making a huge difference in so many people's lives.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just to hear how creative these projects are and
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students are so excited about their projects and they're so involved in them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just, it's wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just can't thank them enough.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanna thank Megan Olson, Michael Skorka, Rich Trotter and the foundation also for their support with the funding and just thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did get to jump on the call last week and I got to hear some of the presentations during the live call last week and it was incredible also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: for the presentation Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have a question because I know in the past years we've had a schedule with a series of pre-budget meetings where the department heads and or principals present so that we we're all receiving a report with you know the different pre-budget information that we have in advance
[Kathy Kreatz]: As we work towards that June date, it's usually broken down gradually over a series of like seven or eight meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know the last two years it's been, they've been meetings, you know, committee of the whole meetings that were scheduled like the same day as a regular school committee meeting, and we would get
[Kathy Kreatz]: one or two reports during that meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that the public also is not really sure and sometimes didn't know that we were doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then we have another meeting in June where we're just going over the final details, but we've already met many hours and over several meetings to discuss the pre-budget and go over any questions that individuals would have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't see the presentation in the shared folder.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you be able to email it to me separately?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks, and then I guess as soon as you know the dates of those meetings, if you could send out a tentative date schedule, because that would be a lot of meetings that we have to include in our current calendars.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just had one follow up question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, um, you know, I did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I heard from Miss Graham and, um, you know, I've been thinking about it and, you know, I do have some concerns myself about only having a pre budget meetings and subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know, I think that, you know, my fellow committee members who are not in the subcommittee won't
[Kathy Kreatz]: be updated on the pre-budget materials.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would just like to know a little bit more information about how that's going to work so that the other committee members who are not in the subcommittee are going to be voicing their questions and concerns with those pre-budget reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because what I can kind of, I'm just seeing in my head is that, we're gonna have the subcommittee meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're gonna be talking about all those pre-budget reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we're gonna be approving those to go to the regular meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then that's when the other committee members are gonna get those reports to then ask questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just, I think that's why in the past, we've always done it as a committee of the whole.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so that everybody's included in the meeting at the same time while that administrator in principle is there doing that presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if there's been any discussion about that, Mr. Murphy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to make sure because I know when this was on the agenda in last June, there wasn't a lot of notice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that you're putting on the agenda to notify the public that there is a Committee of the Whole on March 10th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to know if
[Kathy Kreatz]: Somebody would be able to invite a representative from the NAACP, the Italian American community, some South Medford residents, the diversity director of the city of Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: of course, you know, the elementary school parents, caregivers, teachers, students, leaders, PTO, you know, just so that, you know, that was one of the major concerns was when we had the June meeting, people didn't know about it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know it's on our agenda tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I, you know, like to know if it's going to be, you know, shared, you know, on social media to give people the opportunity to join in, or in be included with the discussions that are going to be taking place around the.
[Kathy Kreatz]: then the renaming of the school um because we did receive a lot of emails and I was confused myself because you know we were getting messages and a lot of the community thought we were taking another vote this evening and you know and you know we're we're not doing that and I don't I don't think and I'm I'm not sure but we're not going to be doing that at the committee of the whole meeting so you know
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess the committee the whole meeting, I think, is going to be to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: schedule like the planning committee, almost like what we did with the other committees, like forming a task force that's gonna be a very diverse group of community members, you know, from all different areas of Medford that are gonna be part of this committee with an application process and how many members will be on the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that what is being discussed in the March 10th Committee of the Whole meeting?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I had a question, I did read through the report and so from what we've all read is that DESE doesn't currently have plans to offer the remote testing option.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So all the schools must plan to offer the testing in school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had a question, will there be enough space in each classroom at each school to accommodate all the students in the cohorts taking the MCAS test while maintaining the six foot distancing?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was curious what it was going to look like and I know in the report that you gave us, there was a link to the test nav tutorial so that you could get a look at it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was wondering if this if that link was going to be shared like in a memo, so that community could then you know take a look at what the test now tutorial looks like.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and get a feel for it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, there's tools such as like a ruler, calculator, magnifying tool, a lot of different features, and you can go through it and just see what it looks like and get a feel for it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hey, Kathy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I don't know why, but it keeps on putting a hand up, but I was going to chime in anyways.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you see the hand showing up, or is it just on my side?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, it's so weird.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a hand on my side.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's so weird.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, that's right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's a little hand, and I can move it around the screen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's never done it before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I want to chime in and just say, you know, I remember when you presented the strategic plan last year, and I remember how much time and effort all the administrative team, everybody worked collaboratively on this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I do think it's a great document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I like the color coding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I was thinking as everybody was talking about how could we
[Kathy Kreatz]: easily, you know, get feedback from the community without creating another task force, because that's what we don't want.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems like everything we're doing now we're creating another task force to get feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there any way that we could, you know, maybe
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we have our initial strategic plan, we could share it and then do a brief survey to ask for some feedback and just have it broken down by section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure, but I just think what I see us doing all the time is we're creating another task force and then forming another group and having another committee forum to have
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, several different communities because we want to make sure that we engage everybody in a very diverse group, you know, to hear everybody's feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just don't quite know how to go about getting the feedback, but I think that the hyperlinks are great and very easy to access and just clicking on the links and
[Kathy Kreatz]: easy like dr edward marie she was updating the document while we were working on it so it seems like it's very user-friendly we could add information and edit it you know easily i just wanted to yeah yeah and i i mean i i think one of the things about being a more engaging school district is inherently that
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I just wanted to just say that I have attended prior to the coven all the middle school open houses at both schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, prior to coven.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great experience and, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they improved the experience just the year before the COVID where the middle school open house was open and they had the student ambassadors and they also had parents, teachers, you know, give a little, you know, discussion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Students come up on this, you know, on the
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, on the stage to give a discussion and then split up into groups and everybody got to walk around and go into the classrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they were doing, you know, a little mini science lesson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just a wonderful experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just it's too bad that we had COVID and, you know, the students didn't get to actually have that in the school experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know they did the the videos that were done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I watched them and, you know, they were shared on Facebook and social media.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I think that's, you know, a great thing that we did, you know, for our students this year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Unfortunately, they didn't get to go into the in-school experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just, it was really a really nice, really nice job what they had done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I really enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I went to both, you know, for the last, you know, four years I've been going, up until last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to ditto on what Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot said, and I just want to thank the superintendent and her administrative team for all their hard work all year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I will say, if my colleagues want to hold off on approving this until next week, I support giving it the extra week so that they can have some more time to review this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you for the resolution, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to just express my thoughts that I'm not in favor of prohibiting perfect attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll vote to move it forward to the rules and equity subcommittee for a future discussion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I hope that during the discussion that the subcommittee can determine some way to recognize students who have
[Kathy Kreatz]: worked to obtain that perfect attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that, you know, you've mentioned that students are coming to school sick and that might not be all students and or all staff.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just, you know, I hope that during the meeting, the subcommittee meeting, there can be a discussion about, you know, recognizing students in another way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe
[Kathy Kreatz]: if there was excused absences, they wouldn't be counted against the student and it might not be a certificate, but just some way to recognize students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that this carries forward to the career and college world.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know at my work, we have a perfect attendance award.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I take it seriously.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If I'm sick, I'm not going to go in just because I want to get the perfect attendance award.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't think it's necessarily every student is going in and infecting other students, but I hope it's a good discussion at the subcommittee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yeah, so I'm opposed to prohibiting perfect attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, so if that is the, the resolution to send it to the rules and policy subcommittee so that it can be worked out to remove perfect attendance from the policies in attendance, then, you know, I won't be able to support the resolution as it is written.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know and just to clarify.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this resolution is to send it to the rules and equity policy subcommittee to work out the details about the reports, because I'm just thinking that is this going to take.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a lot of, you know, extra work on the administrative side, getting those reports ready, or are those reports going to be easily, you know, kind of, you know, extracted via a data, you know, extract, or I'm just not sure how this, because it seems like every field trip to get all that data in all those reports, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, hi, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't have any questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you to Dr. Edouard-Vincent for a very detailed self-evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I couldn't be prouder to have her as our superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to let everybody know that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't know, the question I do have actually is are we going to be doing
[Kathy Kreatz]: our evaluation tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know I have something ready, but I didn't know if we were doing that tonight or if that's going to be another meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know what we did in the past was each of us prepared.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got a Word document ready with the same standards that you prepared and did a little write-up and then did a final comment in any final evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to just send those to you?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or are we going to kind of go around the Zoom and ask, you know, what each of our, you know, like, let's say, grade was?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know the last time we had it was in person, and we kind of went around the table, and everybody just, you know, we went through the standard, and everybody just, you know, kind of gave their evaluation grade.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just didn't know how we were doing it this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I said, I do have my evaluation ready.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just didn't know how we're sharing it with everybody during this particular Zoom call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I mean, at this point, should I just give, like, I did an overall comment in my probation, you know, grading.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Should I do that at this time, or are we holding off till the end?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If I should go ahead and do that, and then have another committee member go ahead with their questions or comments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, point of information, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor, I move to nominate Paulette Vandeclude as vice chair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Paulette Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, and I just wanted to say thank you to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Baptiste and the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a beautiful performance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know my fellow committee members, we've sat through many live orchestra performances the winter season, and this has just been amazing and wonderful, and it sounded absolutely beautiful and flawless.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I loved it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Happy holidays.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Merry Christmas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Happy New Year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Happy New Year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it was Mr. Brown.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was actually his idea, and he proposed and shared some ideas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He reached out to me this week to see if I had a copy of his proposal, which I don't have it, but it was all great information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he actually has over, it looks like over, he has 35 years in the construction industry, seven years at Medford Vocational Technical High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He also has eight years in,
[Kathy Kreatz]: manufacturing and design.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, he actually came up with the idea and shared some, you know, some like a brief presentation at that building and grounds meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I have a copy of the minutes, but it doesn't have a copy of the proposal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I actually pulled out the minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I saved them, but I don't have a copy of his proposal, but I think it was more along, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: What were we gonna go, you know, were we gonna do renovations or was it going to be a new school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think like with everything going on right now, all the updates that are going on, including the HVAC and the boiler and all the vocational updates, you know, I think it might be best to go forward with this committee, you know, for a renovation for the high school, you know, almost like a refurbish the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think also the trouble that we had earlier was that, you know, we didn't have a diverse group.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's why it was disbanded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we need to just, I guess, the mayor and the committee, we just need to, I think, come up with an application process and maybe a lottery process to choose the very select, you know, diverse group.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what, you know, that's what I remember so far.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the update, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ray.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a quick question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was follow up to the response that you gave to Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When you do the contact tracing, does it also, you mentioned the bus, the lunch, cafeteria, does it include, when they're out at recess, does that incorporate the contact tracing as well?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I got just a couple of, you know, just brief messages, just asking once again, and I looked it up, and could you define what a close contact is?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe if you could, you know, define what a close contact is again this evening, just as a refresher?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would you mind doing that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one more follow-up question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if a person, you know, kind of thinks that they were a close contact, but they weren't contacted, what should that person do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Should they get in touch with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ray or Marian O'Connor or the principal?
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would that, how would something like that happen, work out?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just want to thank the team for all your hard work and efforts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a very comprehensive report, just like everybody said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't want to repeat some of the things that were said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my colleagues had very good questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just, when reading through it, I was thinking the same thing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A summary, I came up with the checklist, but a summary is fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking the same thing, because it was such a very big report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When I was reading through it, I just have it here myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, here we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to, you know, just to clarify, and I think this is what it means, because we hear a lot about cyberbullying, and, you know, that's really common with the internet and the different social media tools that we have out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So does on page 19, the definition of
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, regarding technological cyberbullying.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it does mention something that it would, something that does bullying that occurs on or off school, cyberbullying from a home computer or mobile device, if that bullying occurs in a hostile environment for the subject.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So does that incorporate, you know, if somebody was, you know, getting bullied on social media sites, things like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's that's what I assume that but I just wanted to clarify that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, that's what exactly what it means.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would be, I would be okay, I would be comfortable approving it tonight with the recommended changes that were mentioned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention that to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking about how we've had a late start, like a two-hour late start, where I know the storm didn't have measurable amount of snow on Saturday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was still dangerous driving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was whiteout conditions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking, because I know that if we have a late start,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're still getting the parking lots ready to open up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would something like that still be possible?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even if, let's say, families are home and their students are remote, they still might need to get their cars cleared off in case of an emergency.
[Kathy Kreatz]: just to get out of their house on a particular day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was thinking it could still affect people who are remote and who are hybrid.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking about it overall because you just never know when you're going to have to rush out the door for something.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking about that as a late start.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does that affect the end of the year number of school days?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know how closely you monitor the forecast and work with the different administrators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I really appreciate everything you've done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was the vice chair last year and I got some calls from you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was actively involved with everything that you do to make that decision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I appreciate what you do making that decision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a tough decision and you always make the right choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yep, so over the weekend, I reviewed the MASC guide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was sent to us, Mr. Russo, I don't know if you remember, but you sent it to us a while back, a few months back.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, yes, so the very first step is having the superintendent do her self-assessment, submit that to the committee, and then it takes place, I guess the evaluation will take place over several meetings that I think would be committee of the whole meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that would, you know, I think it's just,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, not achievable at this time to have everything done by December 31st with only a couple weeks left with all the upcoming scheduled meetings already.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, I agree with, you know, giving more time to, you know, to have the superintendent, you know, give us the assessment and then we'll have to meet once we get the assessment to,
[Kathy Kreatz]: clarify and ask questions, and then we'll have to do an assessment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I believe it also says that as a committee, we have to determine how we're going to go about doing the evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to do individual self-evaluations?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to do one big committee evaluation?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's still a lot of different factors that we have to talk about even before we do the evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But that's just what I wanted to mention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In the past years, we've done it as a committee of the whole because
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, every committee member wants to be involved in the process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think what we found out with the pre-budget meetings was we wanted to have those pre-budget meetings go to the personnel subcommittee meetings, but the entire committee wanted to be a part of that process because it's one of the major responsibilities that we have, which is the same thing with the superintendent evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: outlined in the guidelines from MASC, you know, we have to decide how we're going to do it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to do it as a committee of the whole?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to send it to the personnel subcommittee?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would the other committee members be okay with that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, if they sent in their, you know, their individual about like there's it's a it's a detailed guide, which I just reviewed over the weekend, which I'm going to send you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So right after I
[Kathy Kreatz]: this um but so it is it's it's actually a big process you know so when i saw the resolution i said i when mr russo sent it earlier this year i looked at it over the summer and i started to go through it and it kept on saying the first step is that you must get the superintendent evaluation so i knew we couldn't do anything at that point until we have that so um yeah so i just revisited it again and um i will share that the document with you
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just I just sent the link and I just wanted to there is a section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's on goals, and it says the evaluation model is goal focus is intended to foster growth on the part of the individual educator for the superintendent, and then it goes on to say that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: in regulations for the evaluation superintendents are required to have one professional practice goal related to their individual professional growth and one student learning goal related to their impact on student achievement so I don't think it's it's
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another typical I mean it's what's detailed here is just something different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it was it was updated in December, 2019.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that this is like the new guidelines for the
[Kathy Kreatz]: for the superintendent evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, we haven't done them yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We haven't done the new evaluation process with the new goals yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This will be the first time we're doing them, but it's just saying that there should be two goals, the student learning goal and the professional practice goal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I agree with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think, you know, I've been on the committee and over the past several years, the schedule does come out typically in February and the meetings begin sometimes I think as early as April.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we are putting a lot on the administration, the superintendent with everything going on with the COVID and the opening of the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I want to vote for a schedule, but I just think that we need some more time for the administration to get us the schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and if we could just, you know, maybe a friendly amendment to, you know, as Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van De Koop mentioned, to the end of January, if, you know, they could get the schedule to us by then, and then we can have it all in our calendars.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'll have the committee of the wholes, we'll have the superintendent's evaluation, we'll have the pre-budget meetings, and we'll have a complete calendar by the end of January.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just think that, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have the holidays coming up in December and some of these administrators and teachers and staff, you know, they haven't had some time off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, and we're still putting some things on them during the holidays, you know, by having them, you know, with the reopening of the schools, getting the students ready to get back into school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the beginning of January for some of the high school students that still have to get back and just everything else that's going to go on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As we enter, we just still have two more weeks left of actual school time and then it is holiday break and a lot of us just take some time off in the holidays.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to vote for it, but with an amendment for some more time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's all I wanted to say.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I was going to say the same thing as McLaughlin said is that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't think it's achievable right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do think it will be achievable and I thought I recall that this would be an ad hoc request like report where it's supposed to be sent to the superintendent not in the form of a resolution but as an ad hoc request report so that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She could then look at it and determine if it's feasible to be done and possibly how long it would take.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's how I read the resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do think that at some point we're going to need that information as we go into the budget, but I don't think
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, immediately we need that information, you know, in January, you know, we're going to, you know, have the date set for the pre-budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're going to need some information about what's, you know, left over for the grants, but, you know, having that information right away in the middle of the global pandemic,
[Kathy Kreatz]: directly after the holidays with the superintendent evaluation in the pre-budget schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just think that I'm getting overwhelmed just thinking about it and I'm not the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's all I wanted to say.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just we're putting a lot on one person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just got my mic on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, thank you very much for the presentation, Dr. Edward Bitson and your entire staff, and a special thanks to Toni Wray and Marian O'Connor for everything that they do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I've been, you know, following the news and
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, listening to a lot of the emails and all the correspondence, you know, the public health experts, the desi commissioner, and the governor have expressed in light of the current COVID cases, students should be in school in person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I trust the medical professionals, health experts, the Board of Health,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the State Board of Health and the CDC.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just, I really trust the experts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I know there's the COVID numbers are on the rise, but from everything that's been presented, the spread has been, you know, there has been very little spread in transmission in the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the spread has been related to either, you know, community and or family or indoor outings, you know, and we have said many times that the schools are very safe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, you know what I what I'd like to do is I'd like to make a motion to accept the superintendent's recommendations continue with The to utilize parts one building classroom readiness and three district and school specific metrics from the original member public schools Reopening dashboard and then update part two member community health metrics Of the original member public schools covid reopening dashboard to include the department of public health's updated color-coded
[Kathy Kreatz]: classification system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to, you know, I want to definitely make that motion because I think that, you know, from hearing from all the experts and, you know, I just have to put my trust in the experts, the Department of Health, the Board of Health, the State Department of Health, the CDC, the governor, all their guidance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I think we should continue to monitor
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the numbers and pay very close attention, like what we're doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just making that motion now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that would be the broad statement with the name of the building?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Correct.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you want me to read the motion again, or do you want to take the hands raised?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so the original motion was a motion to accept the superintendent's recommendations continue to utilize parts one building classroom readiness and three district in school specific metrics from the original member public schools COVID-19 reopening dashboard update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: reopening dashboard, update part two, Medford community health metrics of the original Medford public schools COVID-19 reopening dashboard to include department public health updated color coded classification system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was amended as noted per Melanie McLaughlin to include the disaggregated data of the students who were actually in-person or remote regardless of assigned cohort.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and to include the amendment from Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham, adding an asterisk to note the name of the building affected in the color-coded chart, I believe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that right, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham, in the color-coded chart?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to ask Dr. Maurice if that was okay and doable with the administration on moving it up that many months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that something that they would be able to do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not for this year, it's just going to be for next year?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the building and grants subcommittee had a meeting via zoom on November 5th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Subcommittee members, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot and Mr. Russo were present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also in attendance were Mr. Cles Anderson, parent architect community board development member, Fiona Maxwell, procurement city of Medford, Alicia Hunt, parent and director of energy and environment,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Carolyn Montello Parent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also present were Chad Fallon, Paul DeLeva, John McLaughlin, Peter Cushing, and Dr. Edouard Maurice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First we discuss the upcoming 2021 subcommittee dates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So our March 3rd, 2021, 5 to 6.30 and June 2nd, 2021 is not good because of graduation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the new date is May 26th, 2021 at 5 to 6.30.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After we discussed the career technical updates from Mr. Fallon, he mentioned that the only positive with the students not being in schools has been the ability to do updates at the Method Vocational Technical High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the completed projects are the robotics and engineering, classroom lab and engineering shop, paint and labor were provided by painters union DC35.
[Kathy Kreatz]: LED lighting was installed in many areas, thanks to Alicia Hunt for her help with that process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Programming and web development moved into a new space with 25 workstations, new carpet squares, paint and new computers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Construction technology lab, desks were built by the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The current projects are cosmetology.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A private donor gave $100,000 to put toward this program, provided for painting, electrical sinks, marble install of workstations, replacement windows, chemical mixing room, eyewash stations, and more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're on track to finishing in the next couple of weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's going to have a really nice name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's going to be named the Priscilla Hoff Salon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The automotive and technology resurface the paint shop floor at no cost.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was done by apprentices from painters union, the students assisted with the, with the design plans, and they designed a racing flag, like a racing flag design on the wall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The painting was an epoxy process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sherman Williams and Union shared the cost of the paint.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Originally, Mr. Fallon got a quote of $65,000 and $99,000, but it was provided free of charge.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This was a once-in-a-lifetime project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to extend my thanks, and we did at the meeting to Mr. Fallon, the students, vocational teachers, apprentices from the Painters Union, Sherman Williams, and the Hoff family for all the work that's being done to continue to improve the Medford Vocational Technical High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, special thanks to Alicia Hunt for the support of her schools in finding ways to get energy efficient resources to all of our schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have so many great partnerships.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I provided with the group with an update about the brick fundraiser.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's currently on hold.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we'll, you know, update the, you know, the committee with any updates that we have in the future.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then we moved on to the discussion about the member high school front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Mr. Cless Anderson, parent of high school and middle school students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's an architect and community development board member, shared a design of Meveritt High School front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Andreessen met at the site earlier this summer with my fellow subcommittee members and a couple of other people.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After the BRIC fundraiser idea, he planned a design of what the front entrance would maybe visualize what it could look like.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He volunteered to put together an architectural design.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He went to the high school front entrance with five high school students who helped measure the design in the entrance and they counted the bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The current ramp doesn't seem compliant to the code.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kless offered a plan to integrate a design into the brick work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The first idea was a map of Medford in blue bricks with personal messages that can be stamped on the bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You could have special bricks with landmarks in the town.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The second idea was to put the Medford logo into the bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We would need to think about whether it was recognizable by the eye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, eye level or like, you know, from a distance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students offered an idea of a wave or scientific image.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It showed a hue wave.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another idea of a simple repetitive pattern, smaller quantity specialized bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were a lot of options on how we can deploy this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot expressed safety concerns with the current ramp.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also discussed there were concerns about the sustainability in the white bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Will they get dirty?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kless suggests using all new bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we asked John, you know, if he could get back to us with the cost of what it would cost to replace all the bricks just to get an estimate on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then John also asked Mr. Klaus Anderson if he could do an RFP.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we'll consider, you know, the fundraiser after the project or maybe when we get the estimates and then maybe can meet again and talk about the project again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also on the call was Fiona Maxwell from the Procurement Department in Medford City Hall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was there to help answer questions and provide us with some information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She mentioned there were a lot of rules we need to follow.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds like we have a few different projects going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Project A is a capital project with new ramp, walls, and bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Project B, whether the bricks can be taken out and also an ADA issue, an ADA ramp that needs to be redone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The design work is exempt from limits.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If it's over a certain $1 amount, it would need to be sealed for a bid.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For example, ramp and signage are compliant of 39M.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Purchasing bricks and reselling them make a deliverable good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Architect services make for a bigger project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were a lot of components under one umbrella that we were all talking about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really appreciated Fiona being on the call to
[Kathy Kreatz]: know, to guide us and help answer some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's going to reach out to john, you know, over the next couple of weeks, regarding some of the things we asked for, you know, for him to look into.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miss Carolyn Montello, who's a parent, also volunteered at the site originally this summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's shown a great interest into helping us with this brick project in the design of the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She noted the original intent was to sell the bricks for scholarships, not to cover the whole cost of the work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So she reminded us of that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also like what we all talked about was that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think people will get more excited when we maybe have some sort of a renovated design that we can show people and then maybe do the fundraising of the bricks once we have that design and it will be renovating the school and scholarship program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we all came to the conclusion is that the project has evolved into kind of a capital project now, a little bit more or a mix of a capital project and then the fundraiser.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, and Dr. Maurice also, she expressed that this may need to be done in phases staggered over time with the goal of getting the change of a front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what our goal will be is getting the change of the front entrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the first step is getting a cost estimate to determine how to move forward from there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we did ask John to get some numbers on the different phases, especially those not ADA compliant or safe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and I just want to thank John McLaughlin, Klaus Andresen, Caroline Montello.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I put Bill McLaughlin in the minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It should be Bill Carr, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Susie, would you be able to update that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I just noticed it right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was getting names mixed up, should say Bill Carr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the students for their volunteering and assisting with design.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I thought that was so wonderful that the students went out and they enjoyed what Mr. Andres has said was they enjoyed coming up with designs and counting the bricks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just a wonderful to hear that report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we are very fortunate to have everybody helping us with these future plans and maybe future architects.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you have more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you just had a couple more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a really involved meeting, and I couldn't really cut out a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll just run through.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have them bulleted right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So john McLaughlin provided updates with see building project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's waiting for the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's waiting for tiles, samples.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's looking at colors to look the same as the science lab bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The treads on the stairs are done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if you remember that we went on that walkthrough and the treads are done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The emergency generator is going to cost over $200,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's only $160,000 left in free cash.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Between the bathroom project and the generator, we are going to be running into money problems with both of those projects.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Andrews school roof finished this summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The solar project will finish next summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Speed signs are on order.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The locations are not set in stone, but they're on order.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Playground resurfacing, money from the grant CPA, the Columbus and the Brooks are resurfaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All the broken equipment was replaced before resurfacing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: John is going to get some pictures as soon as he can and share them at an upcoming meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The radio project system being updated district wide, we have provided new radios to the principal offices and all would be linked to the police in the fire.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Cushing provided an update on the McGlynn complex.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They have $40,000 for design at McGlynn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They were reaching out to the city side to make sure that we have procurement done for the soft surface of the playground.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The McGlynn was more prone to flooding, and also they're looking for something for students of all abilities and paths in life to give a better access to the playground.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Alicia Height informed us that she is looking at the solar battery storage at the McGlynn School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The goal is to have the noisy work done over the spring break.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Cushing asked if we could do this at the McGlynn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Alicia Hunt replied, if we did the roof over first, we could do it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then he asked if we could do a canopy instead.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hunt replied that the upfront costs are higher for the canopy and the battery grant is a funded grant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and then the meeting adjourned and you know it was a really really great meeting and I really appreciate everybody and all the attendance and thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't believe john mclaughlin I reached out to john yesterday to ask if he was going to be on the call, he is not going to be on the call this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you want, I mean we could put some questions together in an email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is Mr. Cushing on the call, Dr. Cushing?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because he might, he is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, he has his hand raised.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, do you know the answer to that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: we would have to go to city council.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd have to maybe have John McLaughlin would meet with Mr. Murphy and, you know, discuss what the next steps would be if they're going over because they, you know, John's concerns were that it's going to be a problem to do the generator and the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There isn't going to be enough.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I mean, I would think that we would have to go to city council to ask for additional money.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe we could have virtual tours if we're not having them in school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that a lot of those virtual tours come out really nice in a video.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That might be a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report, Dr. Edouard-Vincent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also want to just thank Dr. Peter Cushing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I reached out to him a couple weeks ago, because while I'm working remotely from home, I was on the phone with a teacher in another district, and we were just talking about, oh, you know, how are you reaching your families?
[Kathy Kreatz]: She had mentioned that in her town, that that's exactly what they did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They had to, um, enter, you know, with the partnership of their police department, do wellness checks at their houses.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, uh, they were able to reach the families and identify and get the information out to everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it's just great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to thank the administration and the Medford police department for their partnership and his and their team.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just, that's going to be terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can't wait to hear back on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did want to ask about, so as part of the number of students not engaged in the Zoom meetings, I know I had brought this up in another meeting that I've heard from some parents that don't want their child, for whatever reason, to participate in the Zoom meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I think that
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that, you know, some parents just don't want their children to be on the zoom meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to make sure that, you know, you know, once again like that, the students, it's not going to be held against them in terms of their grade is pass or fail.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to reconfirm that information, because it sounds like
[Kathy Kreatz]: That information is being factored into whether or not the students are engaged or needing to be closely monitored.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you could maybe explain that a little bit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a follow-up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to just get some clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know when we first talked about the distant learning plan, it was mentioned and I recall Bernadette Riccidilli mentioning that Zoom wasn't required.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know, are we now requiring the Zoom communication or
[Kathy Kreatz]: If the family or student are doing the other work, but they're just not wanting to participate in the Zoom classroom meeting on the phone, and they're doing everything else, would that pass fail be held against them?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Kathy you all set or I just had a final, I just wanted to I did ask earlier, when Mr. deliver was speaking about his committee the whole report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any families that are still waiting for a device, and will there be a third deployment I know right now, the schools are closed, but I was just, you know, didn't know if that was maybe if schools going to be out, possibly longer, and we have families that are waiting for a device, will there be another deployment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the updates and communication.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And yes, I was thrilled, you know, to read the report that, you know, we're committed to having this graduation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I couldn't, you know, even it's just so important to recognize all their achievements.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just such a big, you know, event for the seniors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just thinking of some things that maybe we could do in the city, you know, to just, you know, recognize the class of 2020.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe we could put like a message on the billboard on mystic out, you know, congratulations to the class of 2020.
[Kathy Kreatz]: or even the large movable message boards that kind of pop up with information, either the square or the various squares like West Medford Haynes Square, Medford Square, and just simple things, because I think it's all students, elementary students moving on to middle school, middle school students moving on to high school, and high school students moving on to
[Kathy Kreatz]: college or career.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, because we usually have the moving on ceremonies for each of the schools as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was even thinking, you know, I know that Mayor Lungo-Koehn had, you know, a scavenger hunt where the students put
[Kathy Kreatz]: pictures on their door and maybe everybody in the community could just, you know, put a message, you know, draw something and put it on their door and to just recognize the student, you know, all students who are graduating the class of 2020.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it would just be a simple, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, thing that they could do and just to show our support to the whole community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I was just thinking about that just today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What could we do, something simple that doesn't cost a lot of money that we could all do to recognize everybody and just start spreading the cheer and, you know, the appreciation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion for approval.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The parent is just concerned that it's going to be counted as a not pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to get that on the record that it's not a requirement and if they don't want to go on the Zoom call, it's not going to hurt their grade for pass or fail.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So could somebody please clarify that for me?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and I just wanted to share, um, or, you know, my concern regarding, and I know you don't have the numbers just yet, but, um, in terms of how many families haven't been connected with, and, um, last week I had a conversation with, uh, Dr. Cushing, um, and I shared an idea that I had, um, that maybe,
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we're still having trouble reaching out to these families, we could have the school resource officer, or maybe the police department, do a wellness check with these families.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because you know, how do we know they even have any of the communication that we're giving to everybody I guess.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, I'm a little concerned and worried for those families because if we haven't heard from them, we don't know what they know and what they don't know regarding the distance learning and what we're doing regarding the pass or fail or just any of the communication.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I just wanted to just share my idea and, you know, just put it out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to say a couple of words.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Patterson, I want to say thank you very much for your service over the last couple of years in such a short amount of time you have accomplished so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You were a great help to me when I was signing the bills.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In fact, you came down and met me at city hall and showed me what to do and answered any questions I had about the bills.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've just done an incredible job balancing the budget and beginning the process to change the scheduling of the budget, which we started last year, which was extremely efficient.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we were able to have the meetings more regularly to discuss them in smaller group sessions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just really appreciate everything you've done and I wish you well in your new endeavors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You got it, Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I couldn't find these budget sheets either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I still can't find them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know where they are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have the shared documents with all the narratives, but I don't have the budget sheets for these committee meetings, for the committee of the whole this particular meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perry?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question also to Mayor Longo-Curran after Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nguyen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Van der Kloot, then Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perry, for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I do recall from last year's budget that you did put in for the same two requests for the full-time adaptive PE.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, the middle school would be new, I think, this year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I just want to express the need for the adaptive PE teachers for both special education and vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've heard, you know, many, many times, you know, at the beginning of the fall straight through from parents and students that there is no time in their schedule to take gym or PE.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm happy to share an update from after, you know, the students have been out that I've heard from some of my son's friends who said that they're taking their PE online.
[Kathy Kreatz]: where they're going to record like, you know, an exercise that they have to send in and, you know, it's I guess it's working out really well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just think that it's really important that, you know, if possible, we can get both of these positions added, so that there will be equity with the middle school and
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, also equity with the vocational school and the high school and special education needs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just think it's a, you know, really important for, you know, for everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I'm really hoping that maybe there'll be extra money available for this, um, item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has been requested.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, this is the second year in a row.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to, you know, express my concerns.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question, too.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May I?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lungo-Koehn?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report Molly really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I, I had a question, follow up to Paulette's question, I wanted to know, were there any students that wanted a Chromebook, and they still are, you know, we're still trying to reach out to those families or do we know that information yet I'm just wondering if anybody knows that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had one more question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted, you know, I know it's detailed in the report, but I thought it was interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you could describe the difference between the certified school librarian and the librarian paraprofessional.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you're going to the grocery store, I've been hearing a lot of on the news.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it necessary to wear the gloves in the mask when we're going to the grocery store or the pharmacy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had the very same question that Melanie had, and I guess we'll find out next week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's great news to hear that the middle school students and their families, with that trip, it's going to work out for them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a redundant question, so Melanie already asked the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for your report, Dr. Riccardelli.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to just mention, I forgot to mention this earlier, I think I just got caught up, but I just wanted to thank everybody, Dr. Edouard-Vincent, Mayor Lungo-Koehn, all the administrators, the principals, the teachers, the parents, and the volunteers, just everybody for
[Kathy Kreatz]: What an amazing job you're all doing to put all this together so quickly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We at my work, we're struggling with getting everybody remote access.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And finally this week, everybody has remote access.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're all learning to do things differently from home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is challenging.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just, everybody deserves a great thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're all heroes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, I received a question like, are we going to be providing distance learning for the career technical education students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that in the plans?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's the middle of the year and they would still have three more months left of instruction.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, no, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, my, oh, off mute, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Texeria, for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question, because I know in your report, it mentioned that you haven't been able to get in touch with 30 of the 480 English learners, and you continue to do the outreach.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think, did you do a mailing as well, Mr. Texeria?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like an actual mailing to the families, their address?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There you go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to, you know, I was speaking with Melanie and I really appreciate all the email communications and updates from the superintendent and the mayor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been phenomenal, the updates and the emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do and did feel a little bit like,
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the dark a little bit because we weren't actually meeting the same way that you were meeting with the administrators, let's say, and having like those Zoom calls.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I do support having, you know, a meeting before the, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: before we're supposed to go back to school, which is, you know, set to be May 4th, because with the coronavirus, you know, it's constantly changing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even the president, he originally planned to want to have people to go back after Easter, but he made a decision after speaking with researchers that, you know, it wasn't in the best interest and for the safety of the Americans, citizens.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I feel like the
[Kathy Kreatz]: the virus is changing every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just don't know what's going to happen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that would be a long stretch if we didn't have a meeting before, at least like, I mean, even if it was a special meeting, it doesn't have to be scheduled for three hours, but just a special meeting to catch up and, um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, talk about where we are and where's the coronavirus, how is it infecting Medford, things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's my thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do support having it the 20th if everybody else agrees with that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think that, you know, we have to continuously monitor what's happening with this virus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And because it spreads very, very rapidly, it's very contagious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we just don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I could go earlier if people could.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, I am working remotely from home, but I'm home, so I get out at three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I could be in a meeting as early as like 3.30 just to, you know, get something to eat and, you know, be ready if that works for everybody else.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: First, I want to say thank you to the committee for putting these instructions together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did have just a couple of really simple questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do we follow these same procedures to add subcommittee meeting minutes to the agenda?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know quite often we have to send a request to add our meeting minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would we follow the same procedure, I'm assuming?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just had just a couple of quick questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I just wanted to know, when we send it in the subject, should we put specifically, please add to agenda, you know, something that will stand out that
[Kathy Kreatz]: will be unique for people adding to the agenda so that the superintendent and the mayor know that, oh, this is an item for the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I should make that a priority over some other emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was just my thought at my work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have certain subject procedures when emailing, but that was just a thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also, I wanted to know, who is the designee while we wait for a replacement for the executive assistant, which is just recently developed?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I think Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin has mentioned this a couple of times with some other procedures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we going to put these procedures on the websites once they're approved so that we can easily access them for reference?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, because like, I mean, I think we come across one of the documents which is functions of the school committee and I had the final version, but you know how like there's multiple versions everywhere?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where is the final one?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, so I was just wondering where will this be?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I did want to know, you know, who, like, who should we be, like, just to, you know, to start the process, like,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Going forward, we have to schedule some meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So am I going to send it to the mayor, the superintendent, and who else while we wait for a replacement?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it going to go to Pete?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, so the mayor and superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor and superintendent, chair and superintendent, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it doesn't matter, just put anything in the subject.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, agenda item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: To extend it to three days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you for your years of service, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Caldwell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very much appreciated and congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to say thank you Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ray and Dr. Sabe for being here and thank you for the frequently asked questions to the mayor's office and last Friday's bulletin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was excellent and I found it so useful and some of my questions were answered and I really appreciate it and I know there's a lot of people out there that are, you know, just
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, concerned, anxious, worried.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can they get it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, it's just there's a lot to think about every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're getting the reports and just it's updating all day long.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's all we hear about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it can be a little nerve wracking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really appreciate everything that everybody's doing to keep us updated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also something that we want to think about is the methods of communicating if we have to cancel
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if schools have to dismiss, I did hear of some schools that had to dismiss at the last minute because a parent had come into the school and was tested positive and they had to get in touch with everybody to send the students home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't think we've ever had to do that either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's a lot to think about and consider in the planning stages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I appreciate everything that everybody's doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really a tremendous amount of work everybody's doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: last couple of years we've been going back to school three days in August and this year we're not and I was just wondering if that's going to be the start of a new trend if we're gonna you know kind of we're not going to go back in August anymore or did that just happen with the calendar this year I wasn't sure so it's just I just happen to notice so I just thought I would ask.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to all the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean especially like 36 seniors and you know it's senior year and it's just so unfortunate with the coronavirus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I understand it's very disappointing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And at the same time, I'm torn because I just want to make sure that the students, their safety and well-being.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's a really tough situation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really feel for you and all the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I hope that there's something that maybe another way or an event that we can do here to celebrate maybe not going to France, but just doing a nice cultural event here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, it wouldn't really make it better, but just something that we could do here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to express how this is very sad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did hear from some parents, it's very disappointing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But they understand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they understand that it's a risk.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they don't want to kind of put their student, their child in that situation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a really tough.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm sorry that we have to do this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member van de Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report, Mrs. Seery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question about one of the wish list items.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was, there was zero costs associated with it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The high school engineering course.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was wondering if you could go over that a little bit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it sounds fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've seen the new space and it's beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really big.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's so much to learn and I'm sure Mr. Chrissy would love to have the students in his classroom and he loves teaching everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is this definitely going to happen as an elective?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to say, I did notice that you're going to the Intrepid Sea, Air, Space Museum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I googled it and it looks really exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's so much for the students, so much information to be gained.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds like a great stop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has a really high rating, and it looks really fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know if there was any difference between where we did have the middle school lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Was there a difference in the numbers from last year to this year with the McGlynn and the Andrews?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or did the numbers kind of stay the same with the number of students going?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Was there any noticeable difference?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And let's see, I just want to see if we have one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just, I also wanted to know, is there any communication, like I know that the students, they, you know, they're not allowed to make phone calls home or like, or tweet or anything like that, or is there a way where parents can follow
[Kathy Kreatz]: or pictures are seen like on Twitter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does any of that happen while they're on the trip, whether teachers might post it or the field trip advisor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I hope you enjoy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report, Mr. Lowy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question on the bus transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The fees were pretty consistent for the different sports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For the cross-country middle school, the bus transportation was a little bit more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was $2,640.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wasn't sure why that was, or is that the combined number for both schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wasn't sure whether it was different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you all very much for this really comprehensive report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the first thing that I thought of when I read it was, you know, how proactively Medford jumped right in and immediately began working on this after the bill's inception.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, all the outlines that we see here just shows how busy you've been.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Every month you've either been training, attending, professional development, screening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just shows how much work you've been doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to say thank you all very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Graham.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lazzaro, for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, because I know part of the policy is to have the PTOs contacted so they can come and do a presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know we had the first presentation was last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was in April.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was wondering if, you know, since we have the email addresses, if you could email and see if any of the PTO was interested in coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it was organized last year and several PTO members came out and they did a presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They took turns presenting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And of course, if they can't attend, it's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They can send in a written report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question, and I'm familiar with the report and the reimbursement process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to explain to the new committee members, and maybe, Christine, if you could explain, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Patterson, how a teacher or administrator submits a reimbursement, like what's required in order for them to get reimbursed, and do they get full reimbursement?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First, I have to disclose that my sister works as an assistant group leader in the after school program and I already completed a disclosure of appearance of conflict of interest form and I submitted it with the city clerk's office last Thursday so I could speak this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After learning, immediately after the school committee meeting in November, I heard from some students and they had told me that they were still making the minimum wage, which was the $11 an hour.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was a little confused because I thought that everybody was making above that, which was between the 12 and then going up to the 13.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had sent a message off to the
[Kathy Kreatz]: assistant superintendent's office, and she was, sorry, assistant superintendent of finance, and she was going to look into, let's see, look into an option and explore a way
[Kathy Kreatz]: that we can increase it in the budget level.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to say that I really appreciate everything that you do in the after school program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I volunteered at the Brooks, the Roberts, and I've been to the McGlynn after school programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've observed and participated and helped out in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's very well structured.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a curriculum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It starts off with physical education, either inside or outside, then everybody goes back indoors and they're doing either story time in the younger groups, arts and crafts activities, then there's homework time, and then there's some free time, and I've spent the afternoon
[Kathy Kreatz]: until it's pickup time with the classrooms that I've been in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just been a wonderful experience for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've seen and see exactly what you do on the floor and in the schools working with the students and how they look up to you as role models and how they really appreciate everything that you're doing and just that you're a student working with another student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just wonderful seeing everything that you're doing in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to say thank you and I am very proud of everything that you do in the program and for coming out here tonight and advocating for the after school program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to report out an update about the community fund grant checks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This morning I received an email from Aleesha Nunley, Finance Director Auditor, and the Chief of Staff in the Mayor's Office, Dave Rodriguez, is working on a communications to update everybody about the
[Kathy Kreatz]: grant checks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Under the guidance of the Department of Revenue, they're working on a mechanism to fund the awards from the casino to the individual recipients.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Since the casino just opened last summer, this is the first time the city has made awards based on the surrounding community agreement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we want to do this in a legal and in transparent way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if everybody, we really appreciate your patience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: your continued patience and hopefully we'll see an update either on the website or maybe by email sometime this week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wanted to share that update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to say, you know, thank you for bringing this report and thank you for coming out and explaining that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did, and the superintendent answered already, I did have a question like who was going to be competing and she explained it was like the various different programs, the automotive and the, I forget where my list went, but so that answered my other question and I just want to wish the students good luck and I hope to hear
[Kathy Kreatz]: and hear back from you after the competition.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll be going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've never been.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know, so the state-of-the-art fire alarm control panel, so does that, like, are the students going to be learning, like, you know, where they can detect where a fire might be or, yeah, that's what I thought.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, like, it will, like, identify, like, where, like, the location of the fire and then pin it off to the fire department?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, and that's just, it's amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you very much to the Nadon electrical support and for their support.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just, it is incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just thought it was incredible myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what does the data rack do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, is that like a, like I'm not sure what that is either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I just I really didn't know and I didn't Google because I thought I would ask and find out from the experts Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a quick question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know now, can this award be used for anything?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any plans for the award, what they're going to use it for?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did look through it, and I wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It says something in math and science for higher education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wasn't sure if it was going to a certain department, or was it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just had a quick question because I know this question comes up a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is the difference between a long-term substitute
[Kathy Kreatz]: a daily sub and a per diem sub.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just curious, even at my own work where I work at MTRS, it comes up a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And each school district has a different definition for what it is in their school district.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some require DESE certification for long-term subs, some don't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The same for per diem and daily subs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just wondering what Medford's definition was.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I just had one question, because some of the locations were listed as male, like for example, like M-A-I-L for the location.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just wondering, what does that mean?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really just miscellaneous throughout the spreadsheet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Vicazelli.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say, you know, I noticed last year the feedback we got was we didn't communicate, you know, timely, early, and I'm happy to see that we're getting this information out, all the dates out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so early.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's only beginning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's February.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to check.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have just a couple of questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Two are really simple.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are the open houses going to have the student-led tours?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know they had them last year where the students also participated in the tours along with the teachers and staff.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was something that I think a lot of the students really appreciated seeing and meeting other students that are in the middle schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then these are kind of fun questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to know, last year we had the middle school barbecue in the summer and it was a great, I thought it was a great success.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went, I helped serve, and Peter, he did a lot of burgers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know if that was maybe in the plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's early, but if we were planning to do something like that again this summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And keep us up to date, because I know a lot of us want to help out and volunteer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are you all set, Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one other question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know if the auditing company was going to be doing anything differently to ensure the equitable number of students from each elementary school assigned to the two middle schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've heard that one school didn't have a lot of students in that middle school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was still a little bit fuzzy last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just wondering if there was any plan to do anything a little bit differently to balance it out a little bit better or... So the plan is to do the process similar to what we did last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I noticed it's the Falcos live at 123 Fulton Spring Road.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's just missing spring.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's on page two, community participation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was just a couple of items that were unclassified.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was on page two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Equipment, other, BMCA 2006-25.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can recognize that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, good evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then on page four, Bill and Associates had four items that were just on other supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's for the pool, pool supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School committee woman, Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, because we had talked about it, Erin DiBenedetto, she was a former school committee member, she had motioned last year at the end of the presentations that we were going to record the pre-budget meetings, because there were so many people that didn't know we even had the meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to make a motion to
[Kathy Kreatz]: record the pre-budget meetings that we're going to have in room 207.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Of course, making sure and ensuring that the recording equipment is turned off at the end of our Committee of the Whole meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that Vice Chair Russo sent us a message last week sharing some details about
[Kathy Kreatz]: another community that had their recording equipment kept on during their executive session.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm not sure how we go about doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know who controls turning it on, but I did talk to City Councilor Riccariello yesterday, and all of their pre-budget meetings are recorded in room 207 when they have their pre-budget meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to reiterate that and for transparency so that everybody's welcome to attend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even if they can't get there, they could watch from home or at their convenience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that something that we're going to definitely do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one other minor request, if possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Once we have the final approved dates, can we put the dates, I don't know if it's possible, on the website underneath our regular school committee dates, so that if people forgot what dates they are, they'll be somewhere
[Kathy Kreatz]: where people can just easily go and look at them and maybe we could share it with the press release if we could ask Lisa Evangelista if she could put together a press release once the dates are finalized if these are the tentative dates and we could just share it via social media to engage the public a little bit more because last year people didn't know about them so I'm trying to get the word out there this year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that a motion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah that'll be I guess a second motion a second motion to
[Kathy Kreatz]: put together a press release to share the dates so people can share them on social media.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if possible, I don't know if there's room on the website to fit the dates underneath our regular school committee meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know the structure of the website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's why I'm not sure about that, but if you could check into that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committeewoman Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rae, for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was very interesting reading about all the different techniques.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious about the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What were the most common reasons why the students were requesting Tylenol?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Was it stomachache, headache?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A wide range of things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did read that I guess a handout was developed for the students with the education like to help them Is that something that you would be able to share with us like to just see it would be you know, interesting to read about sure Thank you Thank you, thank you and miss stone
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committeewoman Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And like my colleagues, Mr. Russo and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McLaughlin,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a note too, congratulations on having the DESI maybe interested in coming out to see our program and I look forward to hearing more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did, I was just curious, how long does it take the students who are taking the online test to take their test?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it all day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do they get breaks or is it just spread out over the various days?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committee Woman, Graham.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School committee woman Kreatz hi, thank you very much for the report, and I definitely look forward to the
[Kathy Kreatz]: fair again this year, and I would love to volunteer, so you can put me down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absolutely.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's great to hear that the bank was out to speak to the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I was talking about that over the last couple of years.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some students, and even my own son had come to me when he got out of high school, and he didn't know how to write a check or what to do with his bank account.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was wondering if that's something that we could do for the high school seniors, just adding a presentation to invite maybe one of the local banks to come out and just do a brief demo on banking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I attended at the vocational program, I think one of the students had come back and talked to
[Kathy Kreatz]: some of the students but I'm not sure like what bank it was but it was something like I've been you know kind of asking about for a while just you know writing a check you know
[Kathy Kreatz]: what's involved with going to the bank and what type of identification you need and protecting your PIN and things like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just kind of throwing it out there if it's something that, not like right away, but like something that could be for maybe next year or something like that, just another seminar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It wouldn't be the same day, obviously.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But no, thank you very much, and definitely, I'm sincere, and I just, definitely put me down for volunteer, for sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Calzo for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did serve on the committee and it was all the applications, they were just so interesting and I wanted to give everybody something.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was very difficult to make your decision and it was for the first time grant, we were able to give out 27 applicants and we had 37.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanna say, encourage anybody who is a nonprofit to
[Kathy Kreatz]: apply next year, put it on your calendar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can get anywhere between $1,000 to $10,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the application should come out annually around, annually a little bit either on September 30th or a little bit after into October.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just thank everybody for all their hard work in filling out the applications.
[Kathy Kreatz]: meeting the deadlines and they were all very interesting and everybody, you know, I wish I could give everybody something and, you know, I encourage you to apply again next year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Devaney she did the press release and it was on the website as soon as we had the it was a first-time application so we had to design it so as soon as the application was ready we put the press release out there and it was shared you know on Facebook all the social media and it was it was on the website that's how it was done thank you yep and then that then when we got the deadline date ready we posted that as well and
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I was really overwhelmed and surprised with how many applicants we got.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We didn't know how many we were going to get.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was really nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a nice turnout.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, everybody did a great job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Any questions about one of the reports that was provided?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it was one of the old reports that was on the, I guess it was on the list of the back of the requested reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the report on mathematics middle school supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to, while we're entering into the pre-budget season, this year I think we all heard from teachers who had to buy
[Kathy Kreatz]: supplies for manipulatives.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, it's hard to say that word for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Manipulatives such as dice, beads, blocks, measuring cups.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to make sure that going into the pre-budget season that we consider these items in the mathematics supplies department because teachers shouldn't have to go out and buy the supplies so that their students can do some of the experiments that they
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, have to do as part of the curriculum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did hear that some of the students were asked to bring in
[Kathy Kreatz]: drink mixes so that they could measure the water in drink cups, and it would be able to see the different levels with different colors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I mean, they aren't very expensive things, but if we can just find a way to kind of maybe even ask for donations from people if they want to donate certain supplies, if there isn't enough money in the budget for the additional supplies, but we should really try to build something in the budget so that there's enough for the supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to add that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, just as we enter into the new upcoming pre-budget season.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This evening, the school committee had the organizational caucus, which we have each year
[Kathy Kreatz]: to nominate a vice chair and a secretary for the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All were in attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a nomination put in for Mr. Russo to be vice chair for the year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was nominated by Mia Mastone, seconded by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And all were in favor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd like to take the roll call vote, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the second nomination was for Secretary of the School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz and seconded by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, motion to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committeewoman Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report, Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question, because I know Mr. Falco mentioned that he noticed some black mold.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just concerned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't hear that, and I didn't read that in the report that was presented.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you, when you were doing the deep cleaning, was there any sign of any black mold?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then were the soap dispensers, were they cleaned out?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or were they, do you think maybe it was like particles in the soap dispenser?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or was it, you know, maybe just a change of soap?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would it be helpful if the students
[Kathy Kreatz]: let us know exactly what location the bathroom is, like C building.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absolutely.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would we be able to put just a little
[Kathy Kreatz]: note on the website, the Medford High School Medford Vocational website, just with the brief note that, you know, to inform students and parents if there's an issue to please contact and then provide like the names, you know, if there's an issue in the bathroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: if that's something that would be helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: school committeewoman Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Mayor Lungo-Koehn, I just wanted to know if, and I don't know what the timeline would be to find out the status of the app, because I know I submitted an application.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know several other people that submitted an application to the vision committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there anybody reviewing those applications?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, do we know where those applications are?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we could
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent's office has them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank you, Dr. Kieser, for your report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to give a sincere thanks to you and Mike Durham and everybody that participated in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did have an opportunity to go to one of the classrooms and listen in with one of the veterans that was talking to the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just really great that the students have so many great questions and it's just wonderful to hear them, you know, hearing about the real life service, the military service.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I also got to stop by and visit my son's display.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, my son Noah and his, um, one of the other students, Ian Agudelo,
[Kathy Kreatz]: They had the display and it was just wonderful and it's just great to see, you know, Medford students volunteering their time to help the veterans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I found out from my son was there were eight students, a combination of Medford High School and vocational students that
[Kathy Kreatz]: volunteer on the Veterans Preservation Project and they're gaining more students like all the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They just, it's a passion and they enjoy educating and, you know, teaching everybody in preserving history.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really, it's just one of my favorite exhibits to go to and thank you and thank to everybody who was involved in organizing it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's a lot of work to get everybody there and
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a, you know, it's a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also wanted to thank you for your friendship and your leadership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I learned working alongside both of you is your passion for high quality education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a pleasure working with both of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've been great friends, colleagues.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you both success and happiness in your future ventures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke, it's been a pleasure and privilege to have worked alongside you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've seen your passion and dedication to the city of Medford and the Medford Public Schools shine through.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As a mayor, there's been numerous achievements that you've fulfilled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I appreciate all the remarkable accomplishments that you've done for the Medford Public Schools and the city.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for your leadership and your friendship.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you the best, great success, happiness in your future.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And both to everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we'll see each other.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The rules subcommittee had a meeting this evening at 6.30 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we met to vote and vote on the member public schools attendance policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I can give everybody in their packets, everybody received over the weekend,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some documents, three documents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The first document was the Medford Public Schools attendance policy that is currently on the MAS website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The second document is the attendance policy that we received from the MASC, which is their updated policy dated February 2019.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We use this policy as a guideline when updating the Medford Public Schools attendance policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The MASE attendance policy is adopted by neighboring districts such as Seminole, Winchester, and several other districts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The third document in your packet is the proposed updated member public schools policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to summarize some of the updates that are in
[Kathy Kreatz]: the policy that's the last, the third document in your packet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the school committee had, I'm sorry, not the school committee, the subcommittee had a meeting earlier in, at the end of October, and we went with all the administrators, and we, after that meeting, Paul Russo got in touch with Jim Hardy at the MASC, and he asked the MASC if they could share their attendance policy with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Paul got that document from Jim Hardy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We made just a few changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We added the word caregivers to all the paragraphs throughout the document wherever you see parents, guardians, wherever that's referenced you'll see caregivers as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We separated the section unexcused absence so it stands out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Additionally the language was updated to show the new verbiage discussed in the subcommittee meeting on 10.1.
[Kathy Kreatz]: stating the consequences for unexcused absences are limited to the same day restrictions on participation in extracurricular activities.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lastly, a policy information section was added at the bottom left-hand corner of the document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so we can track the version, date, and approved policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Going forward, this is something that will appear on all newly updated policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The document was reviewed by each principal at each school, as well as the superintendent, Dr. Edouard-Vincent, associate superintendent Peter Cushing,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Associate Superintendent Diane Caldwell, Headmaster DeLeva.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We shared this document with everybody, including all the original attendees at the October 1st meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they all received and reviewed the document electronically via Google Docs, and they made suggestions, comments, or updates as needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what you're looking at is the proposed
[Kathy Kreatz]: updated Medford Public Schools attendance policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: At our subcommittee meeting this evening, there was just one minor update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you pull out the, I guess I numbered the pages, so it's the fourth page, I think, in your document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the last paragraph on the fourth page
[Kathy Kreatz]: That last paragraph where it says each principal or designee will notify a student's parent, guardian, caregiver within three, we added the word school during our subcommittee meeting, school days of the student's absence in the event the parent, caregiver has not informed the school's absence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was the one minor update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the attendance policy was I motion to accept to move over to the regular committee tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Mr. Russo seconded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: At this time, I'd like to make a motion to approve this document so that we can get this posted on the Medford Public Schools website and then share with the MASC as our new updated policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so they can put the updated policy on their website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes, there was, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm sorry, I didn't say that, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there was a vote, and there was none in the affirmative, I'm sorry, two in the affirmative, zero negative, and there was one absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it was the motion passed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nice job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Come on over.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's one of my favorite presentations, and the annual report is beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank the students for the great job and the great work they did.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The pictures are beautiful, the articles, just perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All the projects presented tonight were fantastic, and I did what Paulette says, I look forward to
[Kathy Kreatz]: all the upcoming events and just going to all the presentations and it's just so wonderful and the kids are so excited and it's so exciting that they're starting in elementary and then going to middle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't imagine the upcoming years what we're going to see in the upper grades because these children are starting younger now and it's their idea, their vision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: their voice, and you know, I just heard so many students at the presentations last year, they speak so well, and their leadership skills, and they're great speakers, public speakers, better than me sometimes, so I'm really impressed with the students and all the presentations, and thank you all so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just had one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Molly, I was just, I was curious about, so the stipend student, like the student stipend, what would the students be doing?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, I was just curious about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, okay, great, that's great, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Mr. Cushing, and thank Christine Patterson and Mr. McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is great news.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, it says on the back, please note your official start date will be the date that your return contract is signed and dated and will terminate on December 31st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does that mean, like, do all the funds have to be spent by December 31st?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or is it, you know, I guess you have to accept, sign the contract by, that was like on, I guess on the letter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had an opportunity to go to the Brooks Elementary and volunteer at the after school program a couple weeks ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had a great time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was really impressed with how well the program, it's so well structured.
[Kathy Kreatz]: organized and very safe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a teacher aide, has a walkie talkie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The teacher has a walkie talkie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody's communicating via walkie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was so, it was like really incredible to participate in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I got to
[Kathy Kreatz]: go to the outside activity time, homework time, story time, we did some arts and crafts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just a wonderful, you know, I had a wonderful experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The only concern I had is, you know, I know there's a wait list, and the concern I have is, you know, if we were to fill those spots, like let's say overnight we filled, we got five new teachers, where would those students go?
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's something that I observed was that there's a lack of space.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for the after school program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So like they don't have access to the whole school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's limited classrooms that they can go to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm looking at the wait list and I don't know where those students would go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like if we could put them in tomorrow, I don't know where those books, you know, where the 35 students would go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean if we got five teachers and, you know, everybody's going to be in a classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where would they go?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just thinking, is there a plan to increase the space?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even one of the teachers I was talking to said, maybe a mobile classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I don't know if that's an idea because it would be a little bit chaotic in the gym with everybody in the gym.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was just those little setups.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I've seen them sometimes in CCD class where they
[Kathy Kreatz]: can have the dividers, but I'm just curious, is anybody looking into a plan for spacing, because the numbers are growing dramatically, for the Brooks especially.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just, I know there's a lot of high school students that, you know, that would be interested.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just happen to know that the pay that they're, you know, that they're paid is lower than the minimum wage.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I think that maybe if we, we could attract more high school students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay, so maybe it is minimum wage.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, I thought, I was told that it was 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or maybe, maybe, was it higher than, like was it maybe more than minimum wage and maybe did the rate go down?
[Kathy Kreatz]: By January.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So even these high school students will be going up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that might just be some confusion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But there was another concern that was brought up that the high school students can only work until 530 instead of the 6 o'clock hour.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just didn't know if there was a reason why, like a rule that we have to follow.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for your report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question, and I think Paulette maybe touched on some of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I just wanted to know, so can the LexiaCore be used for the upper grades if somebody's struggling or develops dyslexia in middle school or high school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And will they get the intervention that they need?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just checking on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So LexiaCore 5 does go beyond second grade.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know that a parent, I received a message who mentioned
[Kathy Kreatz]: we think that the Dibles 8 did cover the upper grades, Lexia Core will cover those students as well?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Before I read it, I just want to thank all the administrators for taking time out of their busy schedules to attend the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Toni Wray.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Diane Garino, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lisa Kingsley, Mr. DeLeva, Mr. Tucci, Mr. Cushing, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Downs, Dr. Maurice, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Evangelista, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Emily Lazzaro, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maureen Lavin, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Joan Bowen, Paulette Van der Kloot attended as well, Mr. Texeria, Diane Caldwell,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to just thank everybody once again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know how very difficult it is to schedule something like that and I really appreciate you all coming out to attend the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the attendance policy that's on the MASC website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we had a great discussion and the members of the subcommittee got to listen to all the concerns that the administration team shared with us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we decided was the rules subcommittee members are going to
[Kathy Kreatz]: adopt a district-wide policy that's going to be very broad, and we're going to post it on the MASC website, similar to the attendance policy, or we're going to choose one that's similar to either Winchester, Somerville, Concord-Carlisle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my colleague Paul Russo, thank you, Paul, he volunteered to get in touch with the MASC and ask them for their official document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you once again, Paul, for doing this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So after we receive the document, the members of the subcommittee, what we can do is we can work together online with Google Docs and just edit the document to make it fit Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then once we have the document ready the way that, you know, we think it looks presentable, we're going to share it with the administrative team.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody except for Paulette that attended the meeting because that would be, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: That would, you would be, you know, we couldn't do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're going to, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're not, we're going to share with everybody else except for Paulette.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I'll call another meeting to schedule another rule subcommittee, and we just have to meet briefly to vote to move it over to the regular subcommittee, regular committee meeting, and everybody can read at that time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, and there was one further item that we did decide unanimously during our meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's one sentence that's in the school, not the policies, but procedures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a sentence that mentions absent on a Friday, the student may not attend or participate in school functions on that Saturday or Sunday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at our meeting, we all decided unanimously to redact that sentence from the school district procedures for all schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it will be the discretion of the coach to allow a player to participate in a weekend game if the student was absent on a Friday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was something that I just wanted to share with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's about it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's not our policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we did talk about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The differences between the policy is very broad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's one that can fit all schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But the procedures are individual procedures for each school district.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the four elementary schools have one unique procedure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The two middle schools are working towards having one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But that's all with the school district and administrators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we don't set those procedures, no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The superintendent's going to get copies for all the members of the subcommittee so you can start working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The meeting in June and we met several times and we updated several chapters of policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very time consuming, and we met in over many hours in June, and then it was summer break, and then we came back, and we've been meeting, not like in the policy meetings, but then this was set forth to come to the subcommittee, so we have to get back to where we were.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've already begun working on updating the policies,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it's really time consuming, so we've done, I think we've done like chapters one to...
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, hold on one second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If I could just look at my notes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a work in progress.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just it's quite time consuming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The ones that we already approved in June, we haven't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This one, we haven't approved the policy yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's why the meeting we just had, you were in this meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did not approve the policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Paul is going to obtain.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But then once we have it and we have it customized, I'm going to bring it forth to the regular meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I want to thank you for this report, and I think it's a great partnership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds so exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, is there still going to be, I know they used to have the day of graduation for the students, and the parents were invited and very excited to attend and watch the ceremony, and is that still going to happen, something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was thinking, I heard from Mr. Russo and Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot, and so I was wondering, I was thinking that in the future, if we knew early enough, could we plan like a civic field trip where maybe one of the teachers could go along with the students and go into town with parent permission
[Kathy Kreatz]: to go into the strike or, you know, the protest with adult supervision and as long as they had their parental permissions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do you know how many students
[Kathy Kreatz]: do we know if any students attended the strike that day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another parent had asked me, she said, do you know how many students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or we don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do you know if during the day were there discussions maybe at, you know, at civic class or history class to just talk about the climate strike with the students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just, I also received that question from parents, like did they actually engage in discussion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more, because I know, I think it was last year, where there was a walk-in, where the students didn't actually walk out, but they were allowed to walk into the gymnasium or the cafeteria for about 10 to 15 minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was like a safe walk, where they could do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was another idea that we could do if the students still wanted to have a strike, they could do it within the school at a certain time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But that was just a suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I would be happy to chair the subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yes, I did talk with Mayor about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And even Mr. Brown, he is interested on serving as a volunteer on the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he can bring his expertise to the table.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We also want to have some ideas, just brainstorming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: doing some tours, walking around the school, and just putting together a plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We know that we're waiting for the MSBA interest statement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're hoping to get that, but I think what a lot of people want to do is just have a discussion, start talking about things, and putting together a plan, and then prioritizing it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I do know that currently some of the CTE programs are currently reconfiguring to their new spaces.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it would be nice to even, you know, share some of those stories and we can bring it back to the regular committee and just tell everybody what's going on in those, you know, those areas that are reconfiguring and what the status is in progress and maybe something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we could have like a Google document where we could, you know, have a timetable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is where we are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, this is where we want to be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is when we get the MSBA statement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here's the five-year capital plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's like a lot of planning involved, so it would be a lot of like mini-meetings to just track the progress.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But yeah, so that's about it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, no problem.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the questions I had, you had already answered.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the copy paper and the textbooks and the supplies
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had all the same questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did have one more, and I know we talked about this last year, and I know it's really early on, but I think, Michael, you might have mentioned this, that we wanted to go for an observation day, and maybe sit, I know it's very early on, it's just they're still getting set up and established, but I would really love to go and be invited to the class, and just for the day, without interrupting the instruction, but just,
[Kathy Kreatz]: participate with the students, if that's something that would be possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, I wanted to say it was great news.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got to meet him at one of the science fairs and it's just so amazing and it's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What a great story.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've been to the fall fells with my dog last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we had a blast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he just loved, enjoyed just walking around in the falls.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it sounds like it's going to be a great success.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm all for it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I make a motion to accept.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the very comprehensive report and thanks for getting back to me during the summer with different text messages that I sent you with pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You did a great job and everything looks really great and I also want to thank the DPW because I actually sent Steve Tenaglia a couple of messages and he took care of things immediately and it was really, really appreciated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question because I was comparing this report to the to the year one from the capital improvement plan and Everything was going along and I was checking everything off and so there was a couple of items one of them was the Curtis Tufts the front steel well replacement and
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there anything dangerous, like where somebody could trip on the snow?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, no, no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No safety.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, oh, and then I did, you know, just recently I was asking about the, also was the,
[Kathy Kreatz]: repair the fire alarm system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was originally in our year one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know, I don't know if Christine Patterson wanted to come up and just explain that, that it was, so this is our plan, but it wasn't, all of this wasn't approved in the free cash.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cause like, I, I guess I forgot that, you know, that part of it, that it's just a plan, but we're not guaranteed to get those fundings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm all set.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, John.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was about the crosswalks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did talk to Steve Tenaglia today at the crosswalk, and he said that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He was going to do the other crosswalks as soon as they could, if not, like maybe tonight or tomorrow night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It depends on how many cars are in the parking lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he also, there's two crosswalks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: not crosswalks, I'm sorry, stop signs that are in their parking lot that are all faded out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He said he has two and he can swap them out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I've heard that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: there is an increased class size in the vocational numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's hard to tell because we're only seeing the total number here, the 322, which is the combined number.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering, I mean, if we could just get a breakdown of, you know, the number of students enrolled in the program, maybe at, you know, just an updated report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Wow, 207 in CTE.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for that point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, a nice story.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think we all got an email message from a former MedBit resident.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I ended up calling her because I wanted to, you know, try to just talk to her.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So she had some questions about the original
[Kathy Kreatz]: numbers that were at both middle schools and she was concerned, you know, what are we doing about it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I said, wow, the timing of this email is just bizarre because we just got an update in our packet this weekend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I shared the results with her and she was just completely impressed and
[Kathy Kreatz]: She asked for me to mail a copy to her where she lives in New York.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to do that and mail her a copy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just really noticeable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really dramatic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't think it would really move that quickly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really didn't think.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I just had one other question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A parent had asked me, so her student was in the
[Kathy Kreatz]: Her student was or wasn't in the lottery, I'm not really sure, but her student is in the language-based program, but I guess that group of students wasn't put into the lottery, and she was just wondering why they weren't put into the lottery, where there is a language-based program at both schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you would maybe know the answer to that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we have up next is approval of minutes June 3rd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All those in favor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes, Mr. Benedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is the minutes of June 3rd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you get that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you pack it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so up next is approval of bills, transfer of funds, approval of payrolls.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Mr. Benedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hall in whose second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Benedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we do the roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: next up is report of secretaries and I do have a okay so we're going to move on to report of committees so we had a committee of the whole and we just evaluated the superintendent and
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, that's right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're going to hold off on that one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next is Special Education Subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Erin DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to accept.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, and so I have a report from the Rules Subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had two meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One was on June 13th and the other one was on June 19th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The purpose of our meetings was to update the rules and regulations of the Medford School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everyone has in their packets a copy of the old document
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was either from 2004 or older.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're really not sure about the historical date.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you have a copy of the updated 2019 document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we went through and we updated chapters 1 through 10.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we broke it up into two separate meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On the June 13th, we discussed chapters 1 to 6.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In June 19, we discussed chapters 7 to 10, and we made a motion to accept the changes that were put ahead in the documents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll see throughout the entire document, we removed words such as chairman, replaced it with chairperson, and words
[Kathy Kreatz]: him, his, or her were replaced with gender-free words.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, you will see a new section at the bottom of the documents, and thank you to Mr. Russo for coming up with this great idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is the policy information, such as first adopted date, last amended date, last renewed date, renewed frequency, next renewal, and version number, so that we can easily identify what
[Kathy Kreatz]: the age of the document and determine like when is it going to need to be updated the next date.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to just thank all the committee members for coming to the meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did spend several hours in the meetings going through the very old language and updating it to
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, 2019 language.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of it was very old.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we also reached out to several different administrators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Diane Caldwell assisted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Christine Patterson assisted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Let's see, Headmaster DeLever, Principal Fallon, Supervisor of Nurses Toni Wray, and, you know, emailing, just going back and forth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you to Dr. Edouard-Vincent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was a great asset to the meeting as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my colleagues, thank you as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all for your hard work and efforts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I hope everybody had a chance to review the documents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Erin, did you have a question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there a motion to accept the report?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ochoa.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All in favor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And is there anybody here for community participation?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so report from superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a Rules Subcommittee meeting last Thursday, and the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Medford Schools Meals Charge Policy, just minor modifications.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The language in the policy was changed consistently throughout the document, so now in the document you will see
[Kathy Kreatz]: food services everywhere throughout the document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's also one other minor change.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The last sentence on the original policy under paragraph three was removed because it conflicts with one of the sentences in paragraph one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it was just simply removed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if everybody agrees and doesn't have any questions, we can, motion, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm Tanya Sullivan, and I'm from Brackett Street in Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report, and thank you for the wonderful presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know, like, is there, like, currently, you know, professional training for the afterschool teachers at the different schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, is that already in place right now this year?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krux.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also want to say thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I attended, along with most of my colleagues, most of the spring concerts and the winter concerts, and they're just all, like, phenomenal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything is just perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I brought my mother to one concert.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She loves coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She loves to hear the violins.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you, Mrs. Zigney.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chain, and the entire finance department for everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh yes, most of the questions were answered about the professional development.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was curious as to why it was turned down when teachers had submitted for it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there any type of grants that can be written to get additional funding for professional development that maybe that money could be pooled and accessed by the teachers for special conferences that they might want to go to
[Kathy Kreatz]: single-day events or evening events, or is that something that's already being done?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the PTO, the PTG, the teachers, the administrators, for all the great fundraising and efforts and enrichment that you do for all of our schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The presentation was incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think all of us have been to many of the events at each and every one of the schools, and they're all just incredible, amazing, and you do so many great things, and thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't thank you enough, and I enjoy going to each and every one of the events, and I know everybody here does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to just share that I really agree with all of my colleagues that nutrition for breakfast is so important,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also, I feel like we do need a little bit more information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, are we going to have more information by the June 17th regarding the fees?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, we are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what about capturing all the free and reduced applications?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I think I heard that we have to have that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for the first year, we want to get all that information for the first year, so that... Sarah, is that this first year being September of 19?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, you're all set.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I wanted to know, would the motion have to be reworded?
[Kathy Kreatz]: where it might adopt a different model for each elementary school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz up next.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think you might have answered my question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, will participation in the study, like student participation, encourage students to use marijuana, maybe to get gift cards or
[Kathy Kreatz]: have you experienced any of that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absolutely not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Plaza.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report and actually for responding to my email inquiries so, you know, very quick.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I guess one of, you know, the concerns that I had was about printing the papers and when the materials
[Kathy Kreatz]: if somebody doesn't have a computer at home or a printer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I understand what you explained was that the teachers are currently printing the curriculum right now and handing it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think my concern would be, and I think we received an email from one of the teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's not having the book, the actual hard copy book for some students to take home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: very difficult for a lot of students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can we order books for the EL students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, yes, so I guess what my my question was Is the district planning to purchase the the consumable textbooks for you know Somebody that might need them for their classroom, you know because it does seem like there are going to be some students that are going to need to take them home and
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we just don't know who those students are and how many there are going to be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's the only concern that I have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, because I know, you know, I know not everybody has a computer at home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might not be working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or they might have a Google pad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might not be the computer based.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I don't have a laptop, but I have a computer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right, exactly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's my only concern, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, but I do want to have, like, I definitely want to have one math program and I want it to be instructional math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really trust your judgment and expertise.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I went in and I did go online myself and, you know, it was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then, you know, I tried to print from my
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a black and white printer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just have in front of me here today is just what I got from the teacher, but it didn't quite come out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just all pieces of the picture.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it wasn't something that I would be able to work with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know I talked to me and she said, if you print it right out from the program, it would come out okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's impossible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's why I think we could order 100 textbooks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Gobb.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The presentation was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It answered a lot of questions that I had about what the common signs are and symptoms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was curious, like, is dyslexia something that is curable?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, could somebody with early intervention outgrow dyslexia in their middle school and high school years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that new research?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we are moving on to item number six, recommendation to approve donation to Andrews Middle School Drama Club.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Caldwell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So roll call vote, Madam Secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Moving on to number seven, follow-up report on fundraising organizations and student activity accounts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Emily Lazzaro and Mary Jo Petrone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a second?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo, and then Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Russell, is that okay?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also, Mr. DeVito gets a motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Vandeclute, are you all set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to read here, we have a nice thank you note from the Ethics Board.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It says, dear members of the school committee, thank you so much for all your support in helping us attend the National High School Ethics Bowl.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We worked very hard to earn this opportunity, and we could not have done it without your help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sincerely, the Ethics Bowl.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's signed by the team.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's in our packets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we do have some letters that are going to be going out to thank
[Kathy Kreatz]: some individuals for some generous donations, they're in our packet, and that brings us to the resolutions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we have our resolutions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May it be resolved that the Medford School Committee express sincere condolences to the family of Ellen Gay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Gay was the mother-in-law of John McLaughlin, Director of Building and Grounds for Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committee Resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May it be resolved that the Medford School Committee expresses sincere condolences to the family of John Boyniak.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Boyniak was the father of Toni Wray, supervisor of nurses for Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: School Committee Resolution.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May it be resolved that the Medford School Committee expresses sincere condolences to the family of Anne Maloney.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maloney was mother of Karen Roberto, a nurse at the Columbus Elementary School and grandmother of Amanda Powers,
[Kathy Kreatz]: a teacher at the Columbus Elementary School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If everyone could please rise and we'll have a prayer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, here it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that concludes the meeting, and we can adjourn for executive session.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we coming back?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, we're not.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so we're going to finish up in executive session and then go to regular session, but we won't be coming back in here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Grutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Bobbie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know in the report we got, it says here like poor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It says maintenance is required.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Items should be replaced before the start of the next competitive season.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that seems like we would have to have this done before the next competitive season, which might start up in August.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do see the concerns that Paul has had adding it to the budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that is something that we should really think about, because we do have to have it replaced before the next competitive season, which would mean it would have to fall in either
[Kathy Kreatz]: year one or year two in the capital plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank you, Dr. Maurice, for this lovely report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't want to repeat what Aaron said, but what I really loved was all the activities, all the events that you went to, and the pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know how you had time to do the report, because you're doing so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, it's really great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Grutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to also mention, I read in here, and I'm trying to find what page, but there's a website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you can log on with your phone or with your tablet or on the computer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you want to mention what the website is?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And maybe people could tune in, and they could see a little bit about what we're seeing here in this book.
[Kathy Kreatz]: because you can look at all the projects, and you can click and go into more and more projects.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know what the website is?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, and I know it's in here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jasper knows, right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jasper knows.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then maybe people could tune in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to say thank you very much for the report, Mr. Fallon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I asked you for some information and a lot of people were curious and wanted to know this information, so I'm really happy that you shared it tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was an excellent presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jasper?
[Kathy Kreatz]: On Monday, February 11th, we had a meeting to discuss the final changes for the functions of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We made a couple of slight changes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I will read the final draft, the function of the Medford School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: To this end, we aim to meet the needs of all of our students and to nurture their achievement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: While we understand that consensus can be elusive as we work together, we affirm the following principles.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Deliberations of our committee are conducted in accordance with the open meeting law.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When directed, one member may publicly report, but no one member of the school committee acts alone on our behalf.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Committee members may issue public reports when appropriate based upon their role in the subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Our superintendent is responsible for operating our schools and for the daily implementation of our policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Communication is facilitated and managed by our superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As elected members of the school committee, we should always engage in civil discourse.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We aspire to make our meetings informative and productive.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We agree to discuss the issues on the agenda in accordance with the open meeting law.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All members will honor the consensus of the committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so we had another Rules Subcommittee on February 25th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The purpose of our meeting was to discuss the Medford Public Schools Responsible Use Policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we did was we discussed
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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
[Kathy Kreatz]: updated and they are up to date.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did ask to switch out, there's a URL and the URL says acceptable use policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, the document says responsible use.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we've asked for that update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did, Mr. Russo asked if
[Kathy Kreatz]: A blacklist could be imposed to block out social media networks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent Edouard-Vincent cautioned that social media sites like YouTube can be educational.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The district uses social media, so it's difficult to prohibit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we also do a lot of updates to notify our community about what's happening in the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we just need to use guidance versus restriction.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, we just wanted to reiterate that Instagram is an account
[Kathy Kreatz]: that should not be open for under, I'm sorry, I'm just tired, for account for 13 years under 13 years old.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I'm getting tired.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ladin, she mentioned that each year the responsible use policy is discussed with the new staff at the beginning of school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Children's Internet Protection Act says that social media is not banned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ladin notes that there are no protections out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just need to educate and make whatever you're posting as private as you can.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you're under 13 years old, the students should not be using social media.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One of the parents that attended, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Todfeld, brought up some concerns about using Instagram for submitting homework assignments in middle school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This isn't safe because there is an explore button that cannot be turned off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo noted that Instagram can be accessed via the website or the app.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's open to the worldwide web, and that's why it's a little dangerous for that, you know, that group of students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Latin said that there must be an educational reason for, you know, teachers in classrooms to get the technology tool.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All software must be approved by the technology department.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Google Classrooms is a safe product.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's closed, and external emails are not allowed K to 8.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent Dr. Vincent noted that technology and education go hand in hand.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need to remind the middle school's administration and teachers social media sites like Instagram are not legal for students under 13.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, we must consider students' access.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some don't have computers or devices, so they can't access the material to submit their homework.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Taubville would like to see more education for teachers and administrators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Social media is addictive by nature.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We want to be smart, savvy, and wait a little longer to introduce students to social media.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Caldwell noted that it's top priority to discuss with teachers and administrators at the upcoming meetings and provide additional professional development.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ladin informed us that everything in the building is monitored and archived.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All emails can be recovered,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Student logins begin at 6th grade.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo asked if there's filtering to block sites, and there is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lund responded yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The meeting ended with just adding a responsible use of, oh, with adding the date, left that word out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And our meeting adjourned.
[Kathy 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
[Kathy Kreatz]: and have it earlier and finish directly before the school committee meeting, that could work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We could keep it that night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cause I thought we were, cause I, it said that we were,
[Kathy Kreatz]: approval of the schedules recommended to plan the meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I like the idea of this process tremendously.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 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.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we had it, it would just probably be from 6 to 7.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would like to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to second because I have it written down here that we've always had school choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm a little surprised that there's not going to be a selection form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's something that I think
[Kathy Kreatz]: like the elementary students have always looked forward to getting ready to fill out that middle school selection form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you know, talking with their friends and picking their schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so we have students right now that are in fifth grade that might have been looking forward to doing that and they're not gonna get that opportunity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I feel like this is, I mean, I think it's a great way to, you know, to keep
[Kathy Kreatz]: everything unbiased and keep everybody in the different schools and meeting everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But at the same time, it's a very difficult time, you know, moving from elementary school to middle school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we didn't have any prior information about this, so I wasn't expecting it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought maybe we were going to be doing something like we did last year where
[Kathy Kreatz]: the school would, you know, the students would fill out their forms, and if there wasn't enough enrollment, then we would do the lottery, the partial lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, because we did talk about last year that the McGlynn students mostly wanted, is selected, the McGlynn elementary schools because they felt comfortable there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I do understand it's tough because I understand that you want to split them up to meet other students and they're going to meet them in high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a little, you know, I'm a little, you know, concerned myself and just a little bit unsure, you know, what's the process and how is the public going to take this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I'm just thinking about that we have school choice and now we're not going to give them that school choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I left out the names.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to go through the names again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank the City Hall, the Finance and Auditing Department.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also want to thank the Griffin High School, Accounts and Payroll and Valuation Department, and the JoJo Department.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to give a special thanks to Kelly Cavanaugh, Cynthia Byrne, Juwanda McGraw, Michelle Kagan,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to, you know, just... Oops, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just knocked that off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll put that back in a minute.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mention that when the payroll is sent into the Mass Teachers Retirement System, the total checks and everybody on that file, it's an electronic file, has to match up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's audited at the Mass Teachers Retirement System.
[Kathy Kreatz]: well, the reporting system that we have, has checks and balances in place to pick up on, for example, if somebody went on a leave of absence, or if somebody maybe got an extra check, and something like that might kick out, and that gets audited by the employer services area, and then questions are sent down to the school, and either it's explained, or maybe somebody got an extra check because they were working in one department, they earned the stipend,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the other person didn't get turned off, so there might be an adjustment on one person, and then a correction made.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Things like that happen very often.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know that our payroll software, when it comes through, picks up deductions omitted if somebody is missing and their deductions weren't turned on, which means they might be getting paid, but no deductions were taken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But this is just generic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just talking about I have a lot of districts, and we do...
[Kathy Kreatz]: a very detailed audit and audit every single report in all the, you know, all the public schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we are audited by, you know, PARAC and KPMG, you know what I mean?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the reports are going through those audits and so is Medford Public Schools or they randomly pick school districts to audit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: KPMG does, you know, and they audit the reports that are sent in and they do an audit with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We don't know what questions they're asking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they do not with us, and you don't know what questions that they're asking us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then both of us have to give back up to the auditors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it has to match up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to congratulate Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Stone on her nomination.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to wish you the best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can always help out and train.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know if you need me, just text me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to extend my thanks to all the girls at City Hall and the Finance Auditing Department for being so accommodating, sharing their office space and treats.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They have a lot of good candies in there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really enjoyed seeing them every week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I owe the girls a bag of candy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll probably bring one in sometime.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, thank you to all the girls in the finance and accounts payable offices at Medford High School for organizing the batches and ensuring all the backup is provided.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lastly, I want to thank the custodial department for delivering the package to City Hall in a timely manner every week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Cynthia Burke, Tawana Dubrow, Michelle Kingdon, Fiona Maxwell, Shab Khan, Aleesha Nunley, Joanne Mortel, Erin Carson, Christine Patterson, and John Howard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'll be reporting on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Rules Subcommittee had a meeting on December 17.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The purpose of our subcommittee meeting was to take a roll call vote on the final draft copy of the functions of the school committee and move the draft over to the regular meeting on December 17.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I explained to the subcommittee that the week before, I had met with City Solicitor Mark Rumley on December 10th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He reviewed the draft and he helped make corrections so we would not be in violation with the law or the First Amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A motion was made at the regular meeting to move the draft to the Committee of the Whole so that we can discuss it with the entire committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This weekend, Superintendent Dr. Maurice, she sent out a doodle email note to everyone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think sometime over the next couple of days, we'll find out what date the Committee of the Whole meeting will be.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I actually got to attend the distracted driving seminar last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's something that I like to go to because it reminds me that I don't want to drive distracted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've spoken with Emily before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just really, I go to support.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just really, it's a very good, moving, interactive presentation that they do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just walking right up to kids to ask them, if your friend was drinking, would you let them get in the car?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If your friend is texting, would you let them drive?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they did a lot of little skits with some of the kids.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they do a great, great job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's really very moving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had a tear in my eye, because it's just so sad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And your life can be taken away in seconds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they were just both unfortunate, distracted driving accidents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very sad, very moving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But all the trial attorneys just do
[Kathy Kreatz]: great job explaining the distracted driving presentations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just it's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's makeup.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And GPS and yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: GPS.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Checking mail.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like physical opening letters and yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's go into your pocketbook and it's everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is the webinar going to be recorded so that members could watch it at their convenience at another time if they're unavailable at 10.30 a.m.? ?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, because I read the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it mentions in the report that
[Kathy Kreatz]: We got the chart with what the minimum heat guidelines are for offices.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to know, are there any classrooms or buildings that are so cold that the students and teachers have to wear their coats?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I've heard that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to say Happy New Year, and I put a copy of the report in everybody's packets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and there was a couple of invoices that I signed for that were related to heating, so I wanted to share that information with you because our last meeting, we had some concerns and we had somebody from community here speaking about the heating, and so I guess there's still some ongoing invoices that haven't been signed for yet that will be coming up over the next several weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One of them was signed for this particular session was Gone Green Electric, and the work was done at Medford High School,
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was an issue with the air handling unit in the gym, and it had to be repaired.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The technician troubleshooted the air handler, rewired the motor, and it confirmed with John McLaughlin that he is now working in the gym.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were two invoices for E&E Systems.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The technician found that there was some issues with the hot water coil.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was bypassed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, it was just interfering with the heating, pretty much, it's really technical.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Annie actually did the work and it was, this is going to service the B building, second floor, and the air handler operates along with the pneumonic controller heat exchanger to provide air and airflow to the B building, second floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank John McLaughlin,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I reached out to him to ask him some questions about these invoices.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's about it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We just want to take something out of order, Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We would like to move the resolution that's at the very end, and it's the resolution for the MassDOT Safe Routes to School application for the Roberts Elementary School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I ran out of scripts again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van De Koop?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a simple question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ray, she shared an article with us over the December break, and Mr. DeLaver did as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it does say that the Juul has as much nicotine as 20 cigarettes, like a pack of.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then also, I read that what is in a vape, which is really, really, it sounds horrible, is it exposes your lungs to acriline, which is mostly used in acrylic acid, which is something that is a nail polish remover, that we would take our nail polish off with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what's in
[Kathy Kreatz]: the vape, one of the most common ingredients, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just something that is very toxic and irritating, causes upper respiratory tract, and it's just not good, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I mean, I did read that there are some schools that have, you know, the FDA has posters
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're putting them in the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I mean, I don't know if we have any of these posters in our bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or do we have any reports or numbers of what is happening in our school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it also has a little bit information about the vaping devices.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And a lot of schools are rolling those out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do they work?
[Kathy Kreatz]: do they really detect if the kids are going into the bathroom?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do these vaping devices detect the students using the vapes?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But we'll talk about things after Dr. Schuster.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was just one other thing I thought was really frightening is that it says that currently right now they are developing hands-free vaping hoodies and backpacks with integrated vaping delivery systems so that they could be vaping in classroom hands-free.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's all built into their hoodie or their backpack.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're odorless.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I don't know how we can tell who's in a classroom who's walking down a hallway here or anywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just scary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, did you want to say a few words?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I want to say thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You sounded beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know you were here very early setting up and practicing, and I could hear you the whole time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so last week I signed off on an invoice for, it sounds like a very exciting program that took place over the summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miranda Wilson from the Miffitt Transcript, she taught the students, the CCSR students, she led a journalism workshop for students at Miffitt High School in August, and the students completed the project of writing and publishing a newspaper article.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was so interesting and I thought it was great, something that they were doing in the summer that was educational
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we discussed the final draft copy function of the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were struggling with one of the functions, number five.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So between our last meeting and this meeting, I went in and I met with city solicitor Mark Rumley,
[Kathy Kreatz]: to get some help with him on the wording of what the possible consequences could be for a school committee member who was in violation of one of the policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we reviewed the draft together and I came up with the new number five, which I put a copy in front of each of your tables this evening due to the last minute meeting that we had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We also had another meeting this evening from 6 to 618 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so that we could vote on the new final draft, including the updates to number five, and also including some different wording because we want to make sure that we weren't in violation with the law or the First Amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what you have in front of you right now is what was
[Kathy Kreatz]: looked at by City Solicitor Mark Rumley, and he said that the way it reads right now, we are in violation with the law in the First Amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if everybody was in agreement with it, what we could do is we could, you know, ask maybe if we could put it on school letterhead, and then we could sign it at one of the future meetings, if there's something that you want to see in it differently, or if you have an idea that you wanted to see in it,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we'd be happy to hear from you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Actually, if we talked about it this evening, and we feel like it's ready to go to the floor,
[Kathy Kreatz]: if everybody's okay with the way, it's supposed to be the key functions of the school committee, not the policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's not a listing of everything that we do on school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's the key components.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure if you want to have a committee of the whole, that is something that we could do and we could talk about it
[Kathy Kreatz]: some time in January or February.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If, you know, if this evening, if everybody's reviewed it over the last couple, I think you've got to draft another time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did take out some language that wasn't legal or was in, it was in violation with the First Amendment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's why, you know, if we were going to add anything else, we'd want to have either cities or both city solicitor Mark Marmoley and Howard Greenspan review it just to make sure we are, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: legally incompliant before we put anything on our website and sign it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: DeMantek.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Turgell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: McNeil.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ma'am Rowe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the vendor, Melissa and Doug, they put together a short list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Magnetic hide and seek board, wooden block set, nesting and sorting barn animals, alphabet nesting and stacking blocks, lacing beads, a vehicle chunky puzzle, big button number fun, wooden bear family dress-up puzzle, match and roll shape sorter, stacking blocks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: These are just wonderful, great educational toys.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: November 6, the purpose of our meeting was to discuss some homework we received at the MASC Retreat Session No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Our job was to develop some key functions that would fit well with our school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Each of you received a draft copy in your committee packets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This evening, we had another follow-up meeting at 6.30 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the Executive Session Room No. 207.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so currently, right now, we have made a motion to have a final draft ready for you at the next meeting on December 17th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So please disregard the draft that you have right now, and we're going to get you an updated draft by the next meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a motion on the floor to receive the supports listed on the file?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to say congratulations to the entire band and you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's truly an honor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And like Erin said and Paul said,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would like to go too.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's like a long list of people that want to go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I just wanted to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was there that night, too, with Paulette.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I joined a tour, and I really liked the student-guided tours and reading the survey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think a lot of people did, and they liked seeing all the students in the classrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I was wondering, you know, some of the comments mentioned that maybe if the tours were a little bit shorter, like maybe like two minutes or three minutes instead of five minutes, and maybe could they cover,
[Kathy Kreatz]: couple of different programs like side-by-side on one floor because I noticed that some of the tours went right by some of the programs that the kids were waiting outside and they just kind of walked right by those programs and you know I kind of felt bad and they said oh where are they going are they coming back and you know and and I know that they had to stick to their tour groups but and I know you were just trying it out for the first time this year but I did I really liked the tours because having somebody walk you around it was more
[Kathy Kreatz]: organized.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know to get through all those programs, it would take hours.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was one comment that I really liked, and it talked about the cleanliness of the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was, you know, really impressed because that's something that we don't hear a lot about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was something that I was excited about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just going to try to find it here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was, wow, that was amazing, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to, you know, I mean, I really appreciate the survey results and, you know, thank you very much, both of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krutz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did we conduct any surveys with the community, like an online survey asking them, you know, would they come to a school committee meeting on a Saturday?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We already have the calendar set for the year already, for the whole school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then contractually with the administrators that come and present, you know, can we, can they come and mandate, like we would actually have to, you know, mandate them to, you know, they work Monday through Friday, you know, late into the evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're away from their families all week, all night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And now we're going to have them, I'm sorry, you've got to be away from your family one more time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: because we need you to come in on a Saturday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I'm just... Has anybody asked the administration, like, what are their thoughts or views, you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Before we just jump right in and making a decision that we're going to have meetings on Saturdays, I was just curious what was done behind the scenes, because I haven't received any inquiries from parents asking to have a Saturday meeting either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it came to me as, what is this all about?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was confused because it was almost the message we got was mentioning that
[Kathy Kreatz]: there was a lot of communication between school committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just wondering who, because I haven't been communicating on it or receiving messages myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just, it brought up more questions, for example, sports and church, you know, athlete dancing and band.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And those are going to be other reasons why parents can't come to the Saturday school committee meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Weddings, communions, birthdays, like it just goes on and on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like there's more events on the weekends, Saturdays especially,
[Kathy Kreatz]: doctor's appointments, dentist appointments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I tend to put my dentist appointments on Saturdays, you know, and a lot of families might.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, there's like, there's equally amount of reasons to have it on a Saturday, not have it on a Saturday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it's just, I'm thinking maybe we should do a survey before we jump into making any decisions, and that's what I'm thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Fenton.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a very brief report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The other week, I signed an invoice to pay Irvine and Sons $36,650.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy, can you please speak into it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I'm not speaking into it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The other week, I signed an invoice to pay Irvine and Sons $36,650 for Lock and Var vertical round replacement glass lined storage tank, which is a hot water tank.
[Kathy Kreatz]: at Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know what it was, so I wanted to share this with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a very brief update about the tunnel slide piece that was delivered to the Columbus Elementary School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Currently, right now, the section of the slide is being stored at Hormel Stadium so that it will be safe and off the playground.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Travis Arms, who is with Game Time, he'll be coming out sometime this week on Friday to inspect it to find out
[Kathy Kreatz]: if maybe they might have ordered the wrong part and they have to maybe resend it and get a new part.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll let everybody know when there's another update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I second it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Erin DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hold on, Kathy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My vote, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: First on the list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Erin DiBenedetto?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Simpstone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you for bringing this to us tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really like some of the highlights on the itinerary are
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I really liked was they're going to visit the local high school in La Jaws.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I hope I said it right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're going to volunteer at Centro San Francisco School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're also going to be working in the community with Hurricane Relief.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it just sounds incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want you to have a great time and take lots of pictures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can't wait to look forward to seeing them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here we go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. de Benedetto?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kretsch?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mustone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. McDone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, I have an update, because I'd rather not be the general public.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The slide that's on this is one soldier.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was going to mention the treasurer's report in one week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That should be coming up very shortly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But right now, game time, who's going to do the installation?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're not doing the insulation, but the Parks Department's doing the insulation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And currently there is some trouble with the screws.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just not lining up with the other piece of the slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So John McLaughlin put a call in to Travis Barnes, who works at Game Time, and he's been out of town since September 17th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so we're waiting for him to come back to town so we can come and take a look at the piece that was ordered
[Kathy Kreatz]: to find out why it's not fitting up with the original piece that was there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to hand it out to everybody, and I'm just going to have to read somebody's original report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My report ties into the report that Jonathan read from first reading, so I'm going to read that one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So over the summer, I had made a promise last whole year, at the end of the year, to go out to every elementary school in the Valley of Indianapolis diagram and do a full report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's exactly what I did over the summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I walked around the playgrounds and we put all this together about what we need to be done with the playgrounds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What everybody mentioned, and I mentioned that to the parents is that playground service is definitely part of the capital repair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's just something that I wanted to mention here that we need to think about for future budgets for the other elementary schools, except for the public schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, on July 2nd, I met with the principal, and at their school, the next year he founds a very good, the landscaper's on contract, so the slugs in the community are very well-fed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On July 5th, I met with someone who treated two parents of all their slugs in the shelter system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the things we talked about are replacing the broken section of the tube slide, feeding the puff squash, more squids, freeing both worms, adding mulch, etc.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the other piece that was delivered, which was talked about on the slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was delivered on September 11th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's currently sitting in the playground outlet of Columbus Elementary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, there is a problem with it connecting to the other original piece.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So John will often text me, contact me back and forth and relay more information to the audience that we're still reading.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Once we have enough data, I'll update everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On July 9th, we had the P.T.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Parrot Show at Rodriguez.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had a similar discussion about
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to give a shout out to Mr. Potters, the music teacher.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He volunteers his time and takes care of the garden, the flowers, the flowers, the bushes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just looks beautiful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's so very pretty in the summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can imagine in July.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On July 16th, I met with the two parents and a friend named Karen Turney.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the things they discussed was a gorgeous live session in one of their pre-K
[Kathy Kreatz]: playground area, adding sand blocks, freshly cut signs, and landscaping and mulching.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I do is I run some pictures in a few clubs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I look at before and afters.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're very nice to look at and see the dramatic differences.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to make John Gawthorne, I want to make Deanna Depney, Christine Patterson, Angel Guino, Juan Russo, Michelle Sesol, Michelle Rodriguez, Jenna Graham, Kara Church, Dr. Edouard-Vincent, Iria Burke, Leo Walter,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another thing I wanted to do was, I wanted to just kind of build a kind of follow-up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been giving this stuff to the principals and I just wanted to go in and volunteer and be a vote to the volunteer partners.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I began doing that and I kind of made it up to the schools and then continued to schedule some of the kids.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, I wanted to just mention that I was at the American High School of Higher Information last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great turnout.
[Kathy Kreatz]: While I was there, I stopped in to see my recent teachers of the high school in the location design.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to share a very nice project that the students are working on in plasmatology.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One of the teachers was there, and she, Lauren Skierada, and she showed me one of the projects they're working on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's called the Airbook project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students can pick any of them, choose a picture to recreate the style of the past on the practice desk.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it just came out wonderful, and it's something that the students really like doing, and it's just a lot of fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And another thing I wanted to mention was if you're ever interested in having your hair or nails done, please, you know, feel free to contact Mr. Graves for an appointment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They can get you to an appointment at 781-393-2139 at any time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The kids really like working on customers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you ever, you know, want to get your hair done, you know, feel free to reach out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I have my team from the VTO teaching organization online forum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've been emailing Molly Lattin, Allison Roseberry, Jenny Graham, Paul Roseau, and Dr. Maurice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So right now, what we know, the forum can be added to the website very easily.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Currently, you still need to transfer the membership from Jenny Graham to a point person at public schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we're still working on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think Karen mentioned that last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And still no new update yet, but we're still working on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as soon as we have another update, I'll let you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And last week, I did hand out an ALF scholarship application for the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth graders.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I handed out a form to all schools, but one is left to be deteriorated to one of the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did have a question being, do we need to approve that at the school committee?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to just inform everybody during the summer, I was receiving feedback from both with the yearbook advisor, David Ambrosie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was a couple of students that were working with him.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to implement a supplement package.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure if some of you are aware, but when the yearbook came out, there were some students that were omitted, and there were some pages that were sections of the yearbook that weren't really advertised a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For example, the Mustang Mall and some of the vocational programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So over the summer, Dave Ambrosie and a couple of students, which I'll name, worked together
[Kathy Kreatz]: to help put the supplement together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And last Friday, or last Thursday and last Friday, the supplement was mailed to all of the 2018 class of 2018 seniors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I brought it in, you know, I can share it and everybody can take a look at it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to give a heartfelt thank you because what David did was he actually hand delivered the yearbook to some families and actually brought it to their house to make sure they got it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he's just really, he did a great job
[Kathy Kreatz]: We stayed in contact.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He shared some of the proofs with me, and I got to see them before they went to print.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I want to thank Dave Ambrosie, some of the students, Mia McGillicuddy, Avro Sequeria, I hope I pronounced it correctly, Carla DeStefano.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to say thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one minor update, I know I told everybody in the email communication the slide was
[Kathy Kreatz]: The slide arrived for the Columbus School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right now, the Parks Department is working with Game Time because they're trying to fit it into the old slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they have been going back and forth with Game Time to find a solution for the slide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one last update, and I plan to put this on the agenda coming up for the next meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Over the summer, I mentioned to everybody in another email that the Elks, Medford Malden Elks had reached out to me
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm an ALCS member, and they wanted to let us know that they have a program, it's a scholarship program that's gonna be available for fifth, sixth graders, and seventh and eighth graders, where they can write an essay, and it will be a monetary, you know, kind of scholarship, monetary gift that they're gonna be awarded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have the packages that I can, you know, maybe give to Superintendent and, you know, Diane Caldwell, but I do think it's a new,
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, essay scholarship program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it would have to go on the agenda maybe for the next meeting, but I'm not too sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I can, I can, you know, what I'll do is I'll send an email and maybe hand the packet off tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It came out wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This summer, I went in and I signed the bills at City Hall, the same schedule as usual on Wednesdays, and I communicated to all the colleagues with an email message.
[Kathy Kreatz]: provided some highlights, you know, from the weekly reports that I got.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And everything went smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to thank my colleague, Paulette Van de Koot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She covered for me while I was on vacation for two weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And everything went smooth those two weeks as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a very, you know, everything went very smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank everybody, you know, who helped and participated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good question, I just wanted to say I ended up
[Kathy Kreatz]: taking a ride over to each school this summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just want to say they all look great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like the paint, the playground paint, the mulch, everything was trimmed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's all cleaned up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just looks so nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looked really pretty, you know, and I just want to thank everybody who helped because it was every school and I, you know, I was, you know, communicating with John a lot over the summer and, you know, he worked really hard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody worked really hard and it was a hot summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and everything looks great, and that's it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, no, I have a question about the motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Paula, is this going to be like a committee of the whole, because we would all want to attend?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a motion to accept this resolution on time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know if, and it might come in the future,
[Kathy Kreatz]: on one of the future reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So under the vocational school, I wanted to know if we could get the breakdown of the number of students that are attending, the total number of students attending Minuteman, and the total number of students attending Essex Aggie, or any other vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just really curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We can get that for you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, okay, it's coming, okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Three Minuteman, two Essex.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do we have any students currently enrolled from Everett Public Schools at the vocational school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know we had some enrollment in the past couple of years, and I was just curious if we have that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just wanted to say, you know, thank you very much for putting the information in the paper as well, the bus schedule and the blog and, you know, sharing everything on the MPS Advantage.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I only got one inquiry, and it was a bus was late going to the Roberts, and I heard back from Christine right away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't get any calls about the
[Kathy Kreatz]: high school bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was waiting all day, but I, you know, it was in the paper and I took the paper with me to work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to just bring up something that I found out from a parent in,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I knew we were struggling to get an HVAC teacher and I got the most recent update I got is that unfortunately they haven't received any applicants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they do not have an HVAC teacher right now at the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And a letter was sent home to all of the students that were enrolled in HVAC asking them to choose a different shop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: program and you know I was I was you know I was kind of upset but I mean I guess the industry right now is I guess struggling with you know I heard back from Chad with a bunch of different vocational schools that are experiencing similar problems right now you know if the senior you know wants to pursue a co-op they can work with the co-op you know director
[Kathy Kreatz]: to help find a job, because they'll still be able to go for the co-op opportunity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But anybody who wanted to choose HVAC, freshman, sophomore, junior, they're not going to have that choice this year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was concerned and thinking about, are we going to maybe be sending our kids off to Minuteman if those students really want to enroll in HVAC, because that might be what they want to pursue, which is what we kind of do
[Kathy Kreatz]: for Essex Aggie or another program that we're not offering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's just something that we're going to have to start thinking about.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's such a popular field and it's not going to go away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need to have these young students learn and move on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know how hard, you know, it's still posted, the position is still posted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank the finance department, and I want to thank Christine Patterson, and I also want to thank City Hall, the finance department, for, you know, all their cooperation all year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What they do is they put together the packets and they, you know, they actually put them together and they have every single invoice in the correct order.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so it makes it really easy for me to go through and verify those numbers and the addresses and the names all match up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they've just been extremely helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I actually go into the City Hall office, the finance department, and I sit in one of the vacant desks or in another office with somebody at one of the tables.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they've just been so accommodating with my schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And everybody's just been fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If I have questions, I send an email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I get answers right away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody involved has been fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to say thank you for a great first year doing the bills.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Critz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I was gonna mention kind of similar things that Erin mentioned, so I'm not gonna repeat that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think, I just wanna make sure, I realize that we're gonna recapture some money due to some resignations at the vocational faculty.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really wanna make sure that I know that we're gonna be looking for new teachers, so we need to keep, I just wanna make sure that the money that is put on the budget book, it might change because the person will be entering
[Kathy Kreatz]: the salary would be a little bit different, but I don't want the money that's here listed for these teachers given to another area because the teachers are required to have so many students per ratio, teacher to student ratio, and then with the new freshmen coming in, they're gonna be rotating through the classes, so it's important that we're not gonna cut a teacher because each of the programs here need two teachers in each of those programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know we're struggling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know Mr. Fallon is trying to find people to fill these positions, but I don't want that money to be used somewhere else.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess that's what I'm trying to say, because we need that money there, so when we get those teachers, they're gonna be there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And while they're not there, we need somebody in there teaching with the students, because that is a major concern, because that's gonna be, I mean, it could be up to 40 children in one classroom, rotating through.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's making me a little nervous with that many teachers gone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also wanted to know if there's like an exit interview just to ask these teachers maybe, you know, why they left.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, with the human resources, you don't have to tell us, but I'm just curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's a lot of teachers in less than six months and, you know, I'm just concerned.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it something that's going on with the scheduling and, you know, because I've heard rumors that, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: We need to have a meeting and sit down and talk about the scheduling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not trying to break up the merger.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not trying to do that, but I think that the scheduling is getting a little tricky with the vocational programs and what they have to take to learn their skills.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I hope it's not some of the reasons why some of these teachers are leaving, or I don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I really don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've heard a lot of rumors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to have a meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You might be able to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think the superintendent wants to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know what the plan is for September if we don't have these teacher positions filled?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because we have a teacher missing in cosmetology,
[Kathy Kreatz]: construction, there's a CCL teacher, well he's there, I'm sorry, he's there, I'm sorry, HVAC, there's a teacher, they're down, and then I know robotics and engineering will be down one teacher.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know just from experience with my son in that classroom, it's very busy and I know
[Kathy Kreatz]: the teacher that left was the teacher who did most of the machinery and CNC and like that is in a different room.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's very dangerous.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like you can't have kids in that room operating on their own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and then they're not going to learn the trade.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was for the vocational, and so I wanted to bring up, there's been a lot of confusion, and I've been getting tagged on Facebook because I went out to the Brooks School, and when I went out to the Brooks School, I was invited, or we all were invited by the Brooks BTO, so I happened to have that day off, so I went to the Brooks School to just walk around, and we kind of put a list together
[Kathy Kreatz]: and I just wrote it up on paper.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just a to-do list, a wish list, almost like what the teachers submitted, the principals submitted for their school improvement plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is a wish list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the items on the list can be done, things like cutting the bushes, cleaning up the trash, cutting the grass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Those things can be done, and John McLaughlin has confirmed that things like that can be done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the rumors on Facebook are that I've promised
[Kathy Kreatz]: that the dirt field is going to be replaced with a turf field.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I never made that promise to anybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's some confusion and there's some rumors flying around out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: people are upset with me and they're calling me and emailing me and I don't know what, I really honestly was just going out to put the to-do list together and we as a committee haven't approved anything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was we can all go out and meet with the PTOs and that is one of my plans to do, but I just did that last week and then a lot of things have developed since then, so my plan is over the summer and a couple of us maybe can
[Kathy Kreatz]: go out and make a to-do list at each school and meet with the PTOs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I still want to do that, but the timing of my visit to the Brooks and today's meeting, there hasn't been a lot of days in between that it gave me time to go out to the other schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's a lot of schools to go out and visit and do a to-do list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I'm definitely going to go out to all of the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to clear up that confusion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm not going to go back and forth with people on Facebook, so I'm just addressing it right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And as I think the Mayor said, and Superintendent Baleson said, is that most of this is going to be coming from the capital funding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's a good idea that we put a list together, so we know, okay, so we have this big list, and it's broken down by different schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then we have to look at it and say, well, who's going to get funding and what and where?
[Kathy Kreatz]: But everybody will get funding, I'm sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wasn't picking one school and only going to help that school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to help all schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to make that clear, because I've really been getting a lot of messages and just not so nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to please, that was a misunderstanding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know where some of that information came from.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Don't take it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I know, and I plan to go out to the others.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it takes time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it takes time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, and I just had one more, and I just have an update for another parent that was concerned about some folding chairs at the Roberts, and I will get in touch with that parent, but they do have chairs for all the students,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and there's only like one student that requires a folding chair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So everybody is all set and all the rugs have been replaced.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that some of the information might just be a little outdated with some of the supplies that are at the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One thing that she did want me to mention is that the Roberts is actually short and they haven't been able to get
[Kathy Kreatz]: money for easel paper over the past two years, and the PTO has been buying the easel paper.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if there's any extra funding, you know, just a wish list, I wanted to just add that special note for them on behalf of the parent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to add that, and that's it for me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Jones.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Rousseau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May I vote?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great event.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I attended last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm happy to also read that the students at the vocational school created the t-shirts and the high school, the video department made a great video.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think I saw it already posted on like Facebook with the blog and I continue to share it once it gets closer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, of course, happy to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the brochure with the pictures, I can see the vision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks so beautiful with the plants and the trees and the blueberries.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Michael, for your donations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had a question about the deer population that is in the fells.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you think that we're going to attract
[Kathy Kreatz]: deers and maybe coming close to the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if a person was to walk towards the electric fence, would they get shocked?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I'm just one of the people with that night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I really like the way that you prepared it with all the feedback and the different ideas for the future.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I do like the idea of like the smaller focus groups
[Kathy Kreatz]: and then sending out maybe a letter home to parents, detailing everything in the different time frames.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think at the high school, when they had a grant for the MCAS tutoring, they did something similar like that, where a letter went home to the families, and it was structured.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It had all the details in it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you had to sign that your child would make that attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maybe that would help cut down, of course, the attendance the next time the programs rolled out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also loved reading about all the positives where some of the students the next day were saying, you know, we did this in tutoring, and they were just more, they felt successful and more confident in the classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I liked reading that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That sounded, you know, that makes me feel very happy for the students that they felt that now they can, you know, maybe accomplish a little bit more with math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanna thank the National Honor Society students for all their help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just, that's unbelievable, and thank them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I just want to thank Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: DeCarlo for her years of service and congratulate her on her retirement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did that first.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can't help but trust you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chris.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just have a couple of questions, because I've been just looking at this all weekend and just reaching out to some people.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I just, is it fair to do a partial lottery?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can we do something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it just seemed very unfair, where we're just going to pull the names,
[Kathy Kreatz]: How are we gonna do that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I'm confused about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Having a partial lottery, we're gonna put all the names into a lottery system and it's gonna kick out, so every student that applied to the Andrews, it's going to kick out a report and put them in one school or the other?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Has this ever been done before?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one more question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is the sibling rule, will that be affected?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if somebody had a sibling or has a sibling,
[Kathy Kreatz]: at one of the schools, will those people be put into the partial lottery?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And is there like a time period?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if somebody had a sibling two to three years ago, but that sibling moved up to high school, is that still considered a sibling that went to the handouts?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's stretching it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On Mr. Russo's?
[Kathy Kreatz]: In regards to the fairness in the way that you were talking about doing the lottery, so I kind of don't agree with, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: doing the lottery with just the Brooke School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems so unfair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know they didn't make that selection, but we do have school choice in Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the families from that school sent in their selection form because we had the school choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when we were talking about doing the lottery, we never really talked about that maybe one school would have a lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like the way that I read this packet,
[Kathy Kreatz]: was it says here, all the students who have selected the Andrews, all of them, will be randomly selected to move to the McGlynn, you know, based on class size.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They'll be put into the partial lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just, I don't really like the idea of doing a lottery for just one school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like that just, it sounds horrible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like I just think it just sounds horrible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know they didn't make the choice and it didn't,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know, I get it, it's just something that I'm just having a hard time with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Point of information, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know, I know, because I see the numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did want to mention that I did like when Dr. Vincent mentioned a long-term plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, having grades five to six at one middle school and seven to eight at another middle school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that something that, you know, we could talk about for the future?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's not something because I was, I was even thinking it was something that was more doable, but then I said, Oh, great five.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, no, they're in elementary right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think that's something that maybe we could talk about for next year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you know, in that would be,
[Kathy Kreatz]: we wouldn't have to do a lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great event.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I attended last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm happy to also read that the students at the vocational school created the T-shirts, and the high school, the video department, made a great video.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think I saw it already posted on Facebook with the blog, and I continue to share it once it gets closer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank you for the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the brochure with the pictures, I can see the vision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It would look so beautiful with the plants and the trees and the blueberries.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Michael, for your donations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had a question about
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like the deer population that is in the fells like do you think that we're going to attract deers and maybe coming?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if a person was to walk towards the electric fence, would they get shocked?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I just want to get people with me at night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I really liked the way that you prepared it with all the feedback and the different ideas for the future.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I do like the idea of like the smaller focus groups
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then sending out maybe a letter home to parents, detailing everything in the different time frames.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think at the high school, when they had a grant for the MCAS tutoring, they did something similar like that, where a letter went home to the families.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was structured.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It had all the details in it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you had to sign that your child would make that attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe that would help cut down, of course, the attendance like the next time the programs rolled out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also loved reading about all the positives where some of the students the next day were saying, you know, we did this in tutoring, and they were just more, they felt successful and more confident in the classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I liked reading that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That sounded, you know, that makes me feel very happy for the students that they felt that now they can, you know, maybe accomplish a little bit more with math.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to thank the National Honor Society students for all their help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just, that's unbelievable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We can thank them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I just want to thank Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: DeCarlo for her years of service and congratulate her on her retirement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't help but try.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kress.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just have a couple of questions because I've been just looking at this all weekend and just reaching out to some people.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I just, you know, is it fair to do like a partial lottery?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can we do something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it just seemed very unfair where we're just going to pull the names, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: How are we going to do that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, I guess I'm confused about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like having a partial lottery, we're going to put all the names into like a lottery system and it's going to kick out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So every student that applied to the Andrews, it's going to kick out like a report and put them in one school or the other.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Has this ever been done before?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one more question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is the sibling rule, will that be affected?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if somebody had a sibling or has a sibling at one of the schools, will those people be put into the partial lottery?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And is there like a time period?
[Kathy Kreatz]: somebody had a sibling two to three years ago, but that sibling moved up to high school, is that still considered a sibling that went to the Andrews?
[Kathy Kreatz]: In regards to the fairness in the way that you were talking about doing the lottery, so I kind of don't agree with doing the lottery with just the Brooke School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems so unfair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know they didn't make that selection, but we do have school choice in Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the families from that school sent in their selection form
[Kathy Kreatz]: because we had the school choice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when we were talking about doing the lottery, we never really talked about that maybe one school would have a lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the way that I read this packet was it says here, all the students who have selected the Andrews, all of them, will be randomly selected to move to the McGlynn based on class size.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They'll be put into the partial lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I don't really like the idea of doing a lottery for just one school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, that just, it sounds horrible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, I just think it just sounds horrible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know they didn't make the choice, and it didn't, I know, I get it, it's just something that I'm just having a hard time with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Point of information, Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did want to mention that I did
[Kathy Kreatz]: like when Dr. Vincent mentioned a long-term plan of having grades five to six at one middle school and seven to eight at another middle school, is that something that we could talk about for the future?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's not something, because I was even thinking it was something that was more doable, but then I said, oh, grade five, no, no, they're in elementary right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think that's something that maybe we could talk about for next year in that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: would be, we wouldn't have to do a lottery.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, so I, too, that night, I knew we were having a meeting, and we hadn't been able to talk about who would be the interim superintendent, so we got to talk that night, and I thought maybe somebody would be stepping up into that place, but we did have to make a decision in the best interest of everybody, like the students and the staffing
[Kathy Kreatz]: while we waited to hire our new superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I stand by my decision, and it was more of in the best interest of the schools and the students to keeping, you know, so we would have the training until the end of the school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I have been getting a lot of questions from parents, who's gonna be the superintendent?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there's also been confusion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some people thought we already hired a superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's just been a little bit of confusion all around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But so,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I stand by the decision that I made that night as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to make sure that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Simenon has received this report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She'll get it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She did?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, and I want to- She will get it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, she will get it, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She did?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, all right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to make sure, and I just wanted to also thank her very much for her diligence and
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, communicating all this information to us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a long time and, you know, I'm happy to hear and receive this report tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kierkegaard?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ricciaro?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's something that was mentioned earlier,
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just the communication.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of parents often say they want to hear a lot of communication and what's happening in the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good response between the superintendent and I guess community involvement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So those are some things that are important for the superintendent as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiVentado.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'll call the vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mustone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Vanderkoop?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mastone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next is the report of the secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pretz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have two reports this week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The first report is regarding the Medford Malden Lodge of Elks scholarships.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On Sunday, March 18, the Medford Malden Lodge of Elks held its 34th annual 2018-19 scholarship award ceremony.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A total of 15 high school seniors from various local high schools
[Kathy Kreatz]: including Medford High School and Medford Vocational Technical High School, Andover High School, Malden High School, Matanon, and Arlington Catholic were awarded a $500 scholarship.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students who received these awards were honored for their exceptional academic achievement and their commitment to community support.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The ceremony began with a breakfast for all invited guests, their families, and friends.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The award ceremony included a brief summary of each recipient's essay
[Kathy Kreatz]: and a mention from their guidance Councilors, recommendation letter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Each recipient received a framed certificate proudly presented by Medford Malden Elks, BPOE number 1915.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Many thanks to the Lodge Scholarship Committee for their 34 years of continued commitment to students at Medford High School in various local high schools within the area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Lodge Committee Elks members present were Warren Costa, Lawrence Murphy, Paul Herbert,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Mary Fitzgerald.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a wonderful event that I was invited to, and I was very happy to share this information, and I actually contacted the paper, and they put the picture of the students in the paper, and this award ceremony, we'll get to hear the names of the students who were awarded their certificates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I currently don't have their names, but they will be released once the awards come out in May.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Mifflin Baldwin Lodge of Elks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have a report to share with the committee regarding the, um, probably like the expenditures for the month of March.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I signed up on the typical invoices related to heating, electricity, and pupil transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, there were some miscellaneous invoices, including violin repairs,
[Kathy Kreatz]: interpreter invoices, and an invoice from the MASC for the Summit of Poverty, which Mr. Russo attended.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also highlights from the March 23rd bill.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what I like to do is I like to kind of find something that might be interesting and I kind of pick it out of the invoices and do a little write up on it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I signed up on a payment to Essex North Shore Agricultural Technical High School
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the amount of $35,295.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Currently, there are four students enrolled in Essex Aggie.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Two students are enrolled in horticulture, and they are in grades 10 and 12.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One student is enrolled in environmental science and technology, grade 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one student is enrolled in animal science, grade 11.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then the week of March 30th, I signed off on four invoices, totaling $15,646.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for Ronald C. Boyer, who was electrical fire alarms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what they did was they worked on Bistro 489 to download new fire alarm system software to eliminate invalid reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The invoice was $3,050.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was also work done to connect a new sprinkler system in the cafe to the fire alarm system for $2,806.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was also work at the Bistro to relocate the fire alarm pull stations in Horn Strobe for new floor plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The invoice was $550.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then there was a third final payment from an invoice of $28,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Work performed to install the new fire alarm circuit and replace existing devices in the new vocational bistro.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was dated March 5.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the final payment for that was the $9,240.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was just a summary of some highlights from the month of March.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Seconded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedettino?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van De Koop?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, mr. Okay Yep, so something that wasn't in the report and it was just brought to my attention over like the last couple of days so the
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Medford Vocational Principle was not included in this meeting and what I found out was and what I know is that the Medford Vocational door has a buzzer and they have a raptor system and currently the vocational door is locked which is really a disadvantage for our customers because
[Kathy Kreatz]: Now our customers go to the front door and they have to walk all the way over to the cosmetology and automotive and services like that where they have in their office, they have the Raptor system, they have a buzzer on the door, they have cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanna make sure and update this report, the vocational school, their door should be operational and the buzzer should, they should have somebody, a security monitor,
[Kathy Kreatz]: because we have these vocational services and programs for our customers in the community to come and use, including the new Bistro that's going to be coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we need to have a security monitor on that side.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On the vocational door, there should be a security monitor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's completely opposite.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So let me answer that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll second it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can I just?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We had the vocational side had a security monitor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: up until the point where the security.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So now what are they asking the customers to do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They have to go to the front door of Medford High School, and some of these are elderly people, and they have to go up the stairs, walk through the hallways.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They don't know where they're going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's quite a distance, and I just think that it's a disadvantage to our community if we're not going to have security, where we're going to have the bistro open to customers, but we're not going to have any security.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm actually asking maybe for another person like a security monitor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They used to have a security monitor who would let, who would be in the hallways and, you know, they would get buzzed in and they would go through, I think, you know, she might have run them through the Raptor system, I'm not quite sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But they have the Raptor system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They have the monitors, but there's nobody there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they have a sign on the door that says that you must go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So somebody will park.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiVentino?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van De Koop?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DeBette.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know where I work, and I deal with a lot of different districts, they have hotlines where if I call the main number for my district, the line will pick up, if you're calling to report bullying, please dial number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and you can call directly, and you can leave a voicemail anonymously to report the bullying, and it gets documented.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if the person doesn't feel comfortable, it could be the parent, it could be a friend, and it can be checked out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that's a good suggestion, having a separate line to our Medford Public Schools number.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it would just be recorded maybe by the secretaries
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, hopefully there wouldn't be a lot of incidents, you know, but.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mistone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kress.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Dr. Vincent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have this one question has three parts, if you want to write it down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know the other night it was a long question, so they wrote it down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll read it slowly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as you know, Medford Public Schools has 18 approved vocational CTE programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you enhance the programs already in place?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where do you see the programs in three to five years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Doctor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as you know, this is another vocational question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So how would you work with the school administration to continue to promote the career technical education in Medford, increase the enrollment,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and keeping the kids coming to Medford vocational schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello, hi Tom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as you know, Medford Public Schools has 18 approved vocational CTE programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you enhance the programs already in place?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where do you see the programs in three to five years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can repeat that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, already in place.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then secondly, what is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That answers the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How you doing?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you work with the school administration to continue to promote career and technical education, increase the enrollment numbers, and keep the students here at Medford High School participating in career and technical education?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koot, here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I knew it was right there in the middle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nice to meet you, Dr. Strait.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You too.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, as you know, we have 18 approved vocational programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you enhance the programs already in place?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And where do you see the programs in three to five years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can repeat that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Please do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the first part is, how would you enhance the programs already in place?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And where do you see the programs in three to five years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That answers the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, we'll go around again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Dr. Trevena.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have kind of part two on my vocational question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you work with the school administration to continue to promote career and technical education in Medford?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There wasn't any other questions to that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll have to find you to get more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Kathy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Dr. Perla.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so I have a question, some vocational questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So as you know, Medford Public Schools has 18 approved vocational programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you enhance the programs already in place?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What is needed to remain on the cutting edge of technology?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Where do you see the programs in three to five years?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Benedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have another question regarding the vocational.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you work with the current administration to continue to promote career in technical education in Medford?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just have one follow-up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you allocate money to support the programs?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know a lot of the programs, some of them have a higher number of enrollment versus others.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what would you do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you have any experience writing grants to request money to support some of the programs?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DeMettis.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Machero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Rousseau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. VanCook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You may have her.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. McDone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Leggero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So far this month, I signed up on typical invoices related to heating, electricity, pupil transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, there was an invoice for an elevator repair.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also in the first week of March, I signed an invoice for prospect building services.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The total combined of all the mini vouchers was $35,704.48.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what Prospect did was they performed a disinfecting mist spray at all of the schools in February.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The cleaning also included the high school pool was cleaned, the culinary arts department machines were degreased and scrubbed, and the cosmetology was mopped, washed, buffed, and stripped, and refinished the tile floor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was interesting, so I wanted to share with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have a report and so I'm the chairperson on the rules subcommittee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we met on February 26 in the superintendent's conference room at Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The purpose of the meeting was to review the revised proposed reporting requirements for PTO, PTG, Friends of organizations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jenny Graham, who's here tonight, was instrumental in helping the committee create a softer online version of the oversight guidelines for PTO, PTG, and other internal 501c3 organizations, other organizations that support our public schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In your packets, please be advised that this evening, everybody got revised copies of the guidelines and they were left on your desk this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you could just be mindful of that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a couple of typographical errors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was multiple versions of the copies and accidentally, I think, you know, the wrong one got printed in the packet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So just, you know, be on the lookout for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what I'm gonna do is I'm just gonna read briefly the objective
[Kathy Kreatz]: The document is rather long, but it's very detailed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If anybody has any questions afterwards, I'll be happy to go over any questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm going to read the objectives, and then I'm going to invite Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Graham up to show everybody a demonstration of the online form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, so the objective of the PTO-PTG guidelines is the school committee recognizes that there are a significant number of organizations that operate within
[Kathy Kreatz]: Medford to augment and supplement the educational and extracurricular experiences of our students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: These PTO, PTG, other 501C3 organizations will be referred to as organizations throughout the document.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The committee appreciates the hard work and the dedication of the organization of volunteers and wishes to foster an environment of collaboration and shared vision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: To do that, it's important that the committee understands the number of organizations
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the goals of each operating to the benefit of the Medford Public Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not the goal of the committee to centralize, stifle the efforts of the independent entities, many of which are 501c3 registered entities, but rather support their efforts through transparency and collaboration.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you'll notice that there's a section on organization identification, which includes the online form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a section on the bylaws,
[Kathy Kreatz]: which has some best practice information in it, and it's detailed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's information about fundraising and expenditures.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Training is offered and available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not gonna be required, but it will be offered and strongly recommended when needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's also going to be an annual update, and there's compliance with the policy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So at this time, I'd like to invite Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jenny Graham up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's been extremely instrumental.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's just been a great help and amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she's going to demonstrate the online form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you'll get to see how easy and user-friendly it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Jenny.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not going to be this April 1st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what we're doing is tonight, we are reviewing the guidelines.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what we're making a decision on tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're going to review the guidelines.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're going to see the online form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I'm going to hopefully make a motion to accept the guidelines, the online form, so that we can roll it out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're going to have it put on the website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I already got in touch with Superintendent Belson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So once we approve this, he's going to get in touch with the people who can put it on the website so that we can start collecting the information so that we'll have all the registered groups by October 1, 2018.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because they're going to have from now until October to get registered, because this is a new process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very smart.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really, it's so easy to use.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems like a lot of work for someone else to take on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz, you wanted to make a motion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a motion on the floor to accept this policy, seconded by Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roll call vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to say, I was at the open house, and it was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I loved how it was so personable with the parents and the teachers speaking and the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I actually learned a lot about Mr. Tucci, that he was a baseball player, and he was on the San Diego Padres.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was so impressed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I found that out at the open house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the students did a great, great job taking people around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The groups were filled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Going up to the classrooms, the classrooms were filled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The teachers did a great job with the setup of the projects that were out, and just going over everything, asking questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just a really, it was a very fun evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a really fun time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wish the McGlynn the best, you know, and all the luck.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krex.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to know how the transition is going with the vocational students over centralized in the 1C building.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've just heard from some students and parents, the students who are in the vocational school getting over to the guidance council office, it's just a little farther of a distance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And where some of the students are on co-op,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they're only in school like every other week, so I wanted to know if, and I don't know for sure, but if there's afternoon hours for the guidance, so that the students who are in the vocational side, where they have like the one week of academics, they really can't be kind of pulled from their classes to go down to the guidance, but they do want to participate in the scholarship programs, and they're getting ready for colleges and applications, and it does take some time, so I didn't know
[Kathy Kreatz]: if there was any assistance or aids that help out with that process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What about getting copies of the printed transcripts
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know if you're going to be filling out a college application or scholarship, you have to get the official transcript.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I was just thinking it might be helpful if somebody else in the office, besides the guidance Councilor or assigned Councilor, could print them out for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it would be an authorized person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or Secretary Andre.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Andre?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then I just wanted to know, because I was reading in the report and I did get to talk to some of the guidance Councilors at the high school and I think there is actual like more like social emotional.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so I was thinking in terms of the budget that, you know, do we have enough Councilors at the high school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I'm just, I was really, you know, thinking that myself and I had it highlighted in the report because, you know, I've heard that there's more
[Kathy Kreatz]: social emotional is taking a lot of the time to spend with the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was just my thought in thinking, do we have enough Councilors to assist all of the students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, miss Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm confused because I signed the bills every week and I see every single invoice and I not pay payroll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Correct.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I wanted to ask Christine a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, Christine, I work at the Massachusetts Retirement System, and I know that the deduction reports get transmitted monthly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Correct.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, what happens is, each month, and I don't work on every public school, by the way, because it would be a conflict, but I know I work with other districts, and they report to us monthly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, for example, February is due in on March 10th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so what happens is the district has until March 10th to give us their electronic file.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when they import that file, the file can be exported to Excel and sorted alphabetically.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But that's the month after the payroll's due.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that would be like the soonest, and that would be the most, the easiest way to do it because in myTRS you can generate that report really quickly and just cut out the social security numbers and that could be emailed to somebody, which wouldn't take time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's already built into the payroll software from ITRS, the reporting software, but it wouldn't be something that could be done biweekly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know what's involved because I work with multiple school districts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I do all day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes, I have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: with the committee regarding the expenditure report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When you see the vendor name, WB Mason, the line item description only references telephones.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, the function code represents other expense.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A review of all account structures and descriptors will take place over the summer with the finance director and city auditor to update as needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Going forward, this won't be an issue for WB Mason when you see telephones, which you might see it
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right now on the report on page five of nine, you'll see telephones going forward.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It will show up as telephone other expenditures, but this is just one of the items that is, you know, um, one of the fixes that they're going to be doing with the descriptor updates over the summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and currently the auditor and the finance director actually corrected that one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I just wanted to point that out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, during the month of February I signed batches for invoices related to heating, electricity,
[Kathy Kreatz]: pupil transportation, educational supplies, piano tuning and repairs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was something that caught my eye, Paulette and Paul, because we were at the concert and we kind of heard that the tune, the piano needed a tune up, so I wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I saw the invoice and I signed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, yep, and many more, many, many more, so just wanted to share that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to suspend the rules to have Anthony get the first paper on the new business.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hello, Anthony.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for coming this evening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I sent a special message to Mayor Park because I received a message from a parent who was very gracious for everything that you did last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'll just read the email that I got.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good evening, Mrs. Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to send you something positive from all this mess that's since been unfolding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As you know, the high school was the home of February Camp and also was swept yesterday as it was filled with the campers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would really like to give a huge shout out to Anthony Petrellis.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My son is working as a Councilor this week with Anthony.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's a 10th grader at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Anthony was informed shortly before the sweep was happening and he quickly got a plan together
[Kathy Kreatz]: and met with Councilors to have a game plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They kept these kids extra busy and occupied them in multiple activities during the process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Her son, not going to mention names, said most of the kids had no idea what was going on because of the plan Anthony came up with.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He said the few that did know were minimally scared or nervous.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wanted Anthony to get some credit for what could have been a huge disaster.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I feel because explaining to younger children what the difference between precautions is and when they see dogs and multiple cops,
[Kathy Kreatz]: in cop cars, well, you get what I'm saying.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Anthony, I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for doing such a great job at the camp with all the kids and keeping everything under control.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know my son has worked with you over the summer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you're just an incredible Councilor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the way that you handle kids is incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's a very difficult job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you do it extremely well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to thank you very, very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you, everybody else who helped out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just wanted to, um, to give a big thank you to, um, everybody who sent us the reports last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were getting them and I got a lot of positive feedback from the community, um, regarding the robocalls and the information that was sent out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was, it was very quickly and, um, it was very, you know, very useful and very informative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you before we did the roll call.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I know a lot of people are talking about going
[Kathy Kreatz]: electronic and I think it's fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there going to be a plan for the school committee members to get like tablets or iPads, you know, I mean, I have my phone, but you know, um, so that we have it to view electronically.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So in the interim, until we have those devices, are the people who don't have the laptops going to get their paper copy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm fine with that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DiBenedetto?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kreatz, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mestone?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van der Kloot?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Benedetto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Kretsch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Mustone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Koop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Burke.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to say that this has been the most difficult, like, two weeks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've been struggling every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been heartbroken, upset, angry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it was a bad decision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent has taken ownership of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just unfortunate that it happened at this particular time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm glad that nobody was hurt.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, Superintendent Belson has 50 years of service, 23 years as a superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just incredible everything that he's done for our schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we have to remember that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have to remember all the good things that were done here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was the one poor judgment, but there's been so many great things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's time for us to get back to work, get back to school, implement the safety procedures and practices, and we need the community's help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We still need your help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We want to protect our children, and whatever cost it takes, we're going to make sure that we do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I appreciate all your messages.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It will take us some time to get back to all of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So please be patient, but we will.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank everybody for your patience, and the police department for doing all the searches, and everybody just stepping up and getting out there and, you know, just giving a good word or some feedback.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just been helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank, you know, my colleagues tonight for this session.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was very difficult, and I know in my heart that I made the right decision.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, it was a great presentation, and I learned a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was so interesting when Mr. Toomey was giving his presentation
[Kathy Kreatz]: He was actually holding a device, a vaping device, and you couldn't tell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're so discreet, so they come in just different shapes and sizes, and it looks like a pen, and it was really incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think it was Maureen who described what the vape was like.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So when you're cooking a chicken and there's residue that goes all over your stove, how it's like that slimy film, that's what it's doing to the insides of your lungs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's what, I just couldn't get that out of my head, that film that goes on your stove and just breathing that vape in and it's just going inside your lungs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then going into the room, the bedroom, in plain sight, some of the places that you could hide the vape and the juice and all the components were in plain sight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was like a Pringles jar that opened from the bottom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it was very, it was, it was really, I learned a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really, it was a great presentation and thank you everyone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great job by all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Take care of it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then I'll post it tomorrow to the website, right?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Members, what my weekly responsibilities are as secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Since January 10, 2018, I've been going into the finance department at city hall every Wednesday afternoon to review and sign approximately 15 to 20 batches
[Kathy Kreatz]: Each batch consists of a cover letter, which contains vendor numbers, names, addresses, and amounts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are receipts and invoice backup attached to each batch packet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I go through each vendor line to ensure all the receipts, invoices are provided.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I audit the names, addresses, and amounts for accuracy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The process typically takes between 2 to 3 hours each week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If questions arise while auditing, I email the Director of Finance, Christine Patterson, to ask for clarification.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Once the batch is finally approved, I sign off for the school committee on the cover letter and the warrant runs the same week on Friday so that each vendor will receive a check for their services.
[Kathy Kreatz]: At the bottom of this report is a chart of the first three billing codes so that my colleagues can reference while reviewing the payroll and transfers of the spreadsheet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll notice that 010 is budget major, 890 is student activities, 112 is state grants,
[Kathy Kreatz]: 113 is federal grants, 114 is revolving accounts, 115 is trust.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So please note, if you have any questions about specific vendor items, I would be happy to address.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, I'd most likely need to email the finance department, you know, once we hear the inquiry, so that we can pull the paperwork at City Hall to, you know, to clarify your questions, because
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't bring the batches out of City Hall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I've gone through them, but I don't, you know, kind of remember exactly week to week what items specifically, but I have an idea, and I've approved everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I hope you find this report helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz, Madam Secretary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Always thinking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You could highlight the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so the Medford School Committee Subcommittee on the Rules was called to order by Chairperson Kathy Kreatz at 715 in the Superintendent's Conference Room at Medford High School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Members Michael Ruggiero, Paul Russo were in attendance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Attendees included Superintendent Roy Belson, Deputy Superintendent Beverly Nelson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Others included Bob Russo, Ingrid Moncadia, Christina McGourty, Melissa Melwatt, Jenny Graham, Jane Wright, Gail Trainor, Tony Vento, Patricia Haas,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Robin Irving, Claire Flaherty, Michelle Cicillo, Gareth McFarley, and Melanie McLaughlin.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We all rose to salute the flag.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chairperson stated the purpose of the meeting was twofold, review failed trip policy, review oversight guidelines for PTO, PTG, and 5013 organizations that support our public schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent Balson explained that the subcommittee's work resulted from discussions and questions raised at our regular school committee meeting on January 22nd
[Kathy Kreatz]: He then asked Deputy Superintendent Beverly Nelson to lead a discussion of the field trip policy and forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Copies of the relevant forms were distributed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Deputy Superintendent Nelson explained the need for revised policy and forms emanated from multiple discussions at the school committee meetings around key issues such as insurance, medical coverage, inclusivity, and curriculum alignment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The goal was to produce clear and consistent policy with streamlined forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The policy was developed with substantial input.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Key revisions were included.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Change in the order of sign-off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sequence of approval.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nurse to be notified when student listing is ascertained.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cost to be estimated until full student participation is determined.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Teachers Robin Irving and Patty Haas spoke about their confusion as it related to the new forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They stressed their commitment to inclusivity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They were concerned about the curriculum director sign off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The superintendent exclaimed that it was new and the department director was unsure of the approval requirement in the sequence.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He explained that the curriculum director needed to ensure an alignment with curriculum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A field trip is an alternative classroom and it must be of value.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It must be a substitute for a day of classroom instruction.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After alignment is determined,
[Kathy Kreatz]: then participation listing must be checked out for appropriate supports, accommodations, consistent with student needs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a two-step process.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Health Supervisor Tony Vento exclaimed that Massachusetts is not a compact state and our nurses cannot supervise out-of-state trips.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, the administration of medications by persons needs physician's approval.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was explained that if there were specialized costs, it might be necessary to revise the per-pupil assessment
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, if a trip was canceled for appropriate reasons, then insurance refunds should be incorporated into the planning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Melanie McLaughlin, parent of CPAC chairperson, raised various ADA issues and possible need for SPED sign-off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was concerned if students were eliminated for academic reasons, also for disciplinary reasons.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was explained that special ed students were in attendance, then special ed teachers and staff would be on the trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, the school had the right to exclude
[Kathy Kreatz]: participation for valid academic and disciplinary reasons, as long as they were legitimate, non-discriminating reasons.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Student participation was shared, responsibility between home and school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Ruggiero suggested that the ADA comment be added to the form.
[Kathy Kreatz]: As a result of the discussions, will be made to the forms in the following, ADA reference checklist, change in the order of the sign-off, nurse notification rather than approval, estimated costs rather than actual
[Kathy Kreatz]: process will be better explained.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The subcommittee then began the discussion of oversight regulations proposal by the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Member Ruseau felt that October 1 would be better than September 1st for submission of the materials.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There were pros and cons to the date changes, but it was not decided.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The discussion centered primarily on the tone of the regulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Most were concerned that they sounded too negative and heavy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Also, there was a good give and take on why they were needed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The superintendent felt that greater coordination would not impinge on the autonomy of various groups, but could lead to greater resources and better coordination with the school budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was concern about economic equality among the schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jen Graham volunteered to rework the regulations into a more friendly listing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The subcommittee agreed to hold any vote in absence until the new language could be reviewed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: On the motion, Mr. Russo seconded by Mr. Ruggiero, the meeting was adjourned at 9.30.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I will follow up with Superintendent Belson, and when we have the revisions, I could call another subcommittee meeting as a follow-up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's my feeling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think that would be my understanding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you look at the back of our packets, Erin, there is a, at the very back, there's a recommendation to the approval of the field trip policy and there's a checklist.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what the, you know, what the teachers will do is they'll follow the checklist and they'll have their forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they can bring them, you know, working with the checklist to the appropriate person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so at the bottom, it's, there's been a revision where the signature will be, the order of the signature is the principal or assistant principal in the curricular curriculum and the notification to the nurse.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's not, at the very bottom, there's only approval for
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the principal and the curriculum director, and then notification going to the nurse.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, there is different forms for the day trip and for the overnight trip, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Beverly, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They work hard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is the first year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to say Judy, first year, but not our last.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to make sure, you know, seeing the numbers, and they're very impressive, the breakdown of the new freshman class, you know, going into the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to make sure that
[Kathy Kreatz]: We budget for the increase in the enrollment for all the new programs to make sure that we have enough books, tools, supplies, and seating for all the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did hear that there's a lot of students that might not have some things that they need.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to put it out there for the budget time that we might need to increase the budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I should attend the training.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think you can attend the training.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The training would be wise.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then going forward, you wouldn't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But at least you're trained.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just the training on Wednesday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Vindman.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Present.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mayor Clark.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can answer that one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz sees that with the bill signing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so when you get the bill, it's this big batch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And every single receipt is behind.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the total amount will be $11,904.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then there'll be line items and receipts to match every single item.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'd be happy to show you if you want to come down one day on Wednesday, then you can sit next to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It takes about three hours, and we can go do it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then it would be nice to have another person trained, because it is something you have to do every week in case I couldn't make it for some reason.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It does have to be done by Wednesday, because then they have to run the warrants, and then they call Joe and invite him.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yeah, so anytime, just text me and you can come and see.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really interesting because even glue that's 98 cents, there'll be a receipt for it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Honestly, 25 cents, I've seen receipts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it's been very, very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. DeVetta.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Stone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Ruggiero.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Russo.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Van de Kloop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: May I have a vote?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did receive several calls from parents who mentioned that the day that school was open, because it was very, very cold, that there was a lot of teachers absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And most of the kids were sent to lecture halls that were not heated, and they were freezing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The children were just freezing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And for example, one student, one of his teachers was in, and all the other classes, he went to freezing cold lecture halls that were not heated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just really, really, really, really cold.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And students were wearing gloves, and they had
[Kathy Kreatz]: the, you know, the little, I forget what they're called, the heat warmers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right, they had, you know, hand warmers, passing them around, and a lot of kids got sick.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I got a lot of calls about that, and I'm not sure if, you know, I tried to identify, like, what area, you know, and, you know, I just don't know, but it was mainly that it was really, really cold in the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, that was my suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If the lecture halls were not heated, maybe have them go to the cafeteria.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, seven in the affirmative, zero in the negative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'm in the affirmative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, in regards to the field trip policy,
[Kathy Kreatz]: if the teachers and all the other administrators are aware of the school policies, what they need to follow before they make their field trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson, could you help answer that question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a couple of questions from a teacher, and I just wasn't sure if everybody's aware to follow these policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know from Superintendent Belson if there was an update on the ongoing investigation with the
[Kathy Kreatz]: concussion that was on the soccer field on October 11th, 2017.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you hear anything from the superintendent in Beverly?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there an update?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can now second the motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had a question also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, because I think some of the public community was asking me, why are there only two school committee members allowed for the external search?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I couldn't quite remember the answer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to know if there was any opportunity for there to be an alternate where two committee members could serve for five meetings, and then another two committee members could serve for another five meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: so that everybody would have an exposure if we get to that level.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to say thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I saw the story shared on Facebook, and I couldn't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And now you're here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's so wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much for doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, she's been waiting patiently.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the updated report, Dr. Brewer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also spoke to a couple of parents and they mentioned to me that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, that over the last week or so, it's been, there's been a lot of pushing and shoving every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I'm just not sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you, um, interview any of the students to find out why that's happening?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it because like, it just seems like it's because it's overcrowded, but I know that particular day it wasn't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of the parents I spoke to said that one parent said that their student was waiting in line, but it was so crowded that their student like went off to call for a ride from a parent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like it seems like maybe it starts out crowded and maybe it doesn't end as crowded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think what I've heard is that students are sitting on the ground in the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I've heard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've also heard that the bus passes aren't being checked for ridership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that there's just, for some reason, recently, pushing and shoving going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know why, if it's not overcrowded, why are shooting, you know, pushing and shoving to get on the bus?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are you all set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I think so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to make sure, so are the student IDs going to be monitored to make sure that the students that are going on the bus are the students that are eligible to go on the Fulton Heights bus?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure, like it does say that there will be administrators out there reviewing student usage of the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are they going to be checking them as they go on?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was just one other concern was what I also heard was that the students were walking in the street along with the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there anybody going to be right out there making sure that students aren't doing that for any of the buses?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Dr. Perrella, over the weekend, between Friday and Sunday, the Medford High School Medford Vocational Facebook page, parents were writing just nonstop about the vaping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they want to know who's monitoring the hallways and outside the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I guess, like you said, it's in plain sight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a student could walk by you, and then they're vaping just as they walk by you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've been told that this is happening, and that people, you know, students are doing, you know, vaping in the bathroom, in the classroom, like Aaron described once before, where they're puffing it right into their sweatshirt, and it's, they're just, it's done in plain sight, almost like right in the classroom, and it's really concerning to a lot of parents, but it just seems like, because they're such small devices,
[Kathy Kreatz]: very hard to detect, and it's odorless.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mentioned to the parents that we had the discussion with Team Medford, and that Penny was here, and I added the YouTube video and told them exactly what sections that were discussed, and I encouraged them to go to the seminar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they'd also like to know, when is the student assembly?
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was their big question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What did they hear from their children about the student assembly?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't think it happened yet, or did it happen?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it a particular bathroom or area?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And could we have Officer Riccardi monitor that area?
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there's a certain bathroom that this is really happening in?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also read a comment that one parent said that their child was offered
[Kathy Kreatz]: to purchase marijuana outside the bathroom or in the hallway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just don't know if we need to have maybe Officer Riccardi kind of rotate around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to bring it to your attention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, I'll start with Bob.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Bob, I want to thank you very much for your years of dedication.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I see your eyes light up when you go to a classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to a kindergarten classroom with you to pilot at the Roberts Elementary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we had a blast together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Noah absolutely loves you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he has the same passion for history that you have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that I'm going to see you when I stop by my parents' house and we go for a walk with my little nephew dog, Monty.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we'll see you around the neighborhood.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just want to thank you so much for taking time to be a great mentor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, when I first started, you helped me a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just thank you so much for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was greatly appreciated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you so much for your years of service.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've just been fantastic in the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've just been everywhere, and you just know everything, and yeah, everybody says it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll be missed, but I know I'll see you around my parents' house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Anne-Marie, I want to thank you for your years of service, and I think Anne-Marie was one of the first people, when we first, when I first started on school committee, she invited me over to her house, and I got to meet her whole family, and she had coffee and snacks,
[Kathy Kreatz]: She was so welcoming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She immediately started telling me, OK, well, there's the MASC, and you need to go to one of the meetings, the general meeting, to find out what the committee does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Mia, Aaron, and I went to the meeting, and we learned a lot of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've been at all the events.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I've seen you at all of the sporting events, the band, you know, the Italian club and all that you do for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just been, you know, a pleasure to work with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, you'll be missed and I know I'm going to see you around town.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really appreciate everything that you've done to help myself and to, you know, teach me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you've just been a great mentor and friend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You both be missed and I wish you both the very best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, in regards to the field trip policy, if the teachers and all the other administrators are aware of the school policies, what they need to follow before they make their field trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson, could you help answer that question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a couple of questions from a teacher, and I just wasn't sure if everybody's aware to follow these policies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know from Superintendent Belson if there was an update on the ongoing investigation with the concussion that was on the soccer field on October 11, 2017.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you hear anything from the superintendent in Barreley?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there an update?
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, you all set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can now second the motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just, I had a question also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, because I think some of the public community was asking me, you know, why are there only two school committee members allowed for the external search?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I couldn't quite remember the answer.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to know if
[Kathy Kreatz]: if there was any opportunity for there to be an alternate where two committee members could serve for five meetings, and then another two committee members could serve for another five meetings, so that everybody would have an exposure if we get to that level.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I just want to say thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I saw the story shared on Facebook, and I couldn't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And now you're here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's so wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much for doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, waiting patiently.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the updated report, Dr. Brower.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also spoke to a couple of parents, and they mentioned to me that over the last week or so, there's been a lot of pushing and shoving every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just not sure, did you interview any of the students to find out why that's happening?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it because?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems like it's because it's overcrowded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I know that particular day, it wasn't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of the parents I spoke to said that one parent said that their student was waiting in line, but it was so crowded that their student went off to call for a ride from a parent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It seems like maybe it starts out crowded and maybe it doesn't end as crowded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I think what I've heard is that students are sitting on the ground in the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I've heard.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've also heard that the bus passes aren't being checked for ridership.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that there's just, for some reason, recently, pushing and shoving going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know why, if it's not overcrowded, why are shooting, you know, pushing and shoving to get on the bus?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are you all set?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep, I think so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to make sure, so are the student IDs going to be monitored to make sure that the students that are going on the bus are the students that are eligible to go on the Fulton Heights bus?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not sure, like it does say that there will be administrators out there reviewing student usage of the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are they going to be checking them as they go on?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was just one other concern was what I also heard was that the students were walking in the street along with the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is there anybody going to be right out there making sure that students aren't doing that for any of the buses?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Dr. Perrella, over the weekend between Friday and Sunday, the Medford High School Medford Vocational Facebook page, parents were writing just nonstop about the vaping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they want to know who's monitoring the hallways and outside the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I guess, like you said, it's in plain sight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So a student could walk by you, and then they're vaping just as they walk by you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've been told that this is happening, and that people, you know, students are doing, you know, vaping in the bathroom, in the classroom, like Aaron described once before, where they're puffing it right into their sweatshirt, and it's, they're just, it's done in plain sight, almost like right in the classroom, and it's really concerning to a lot of parents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just seems like, because they're such small devices, very hard to detect, and it's odorless.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mentioned to the parents that we had the discussion with Team Medford, and that Penny was here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I added the YouTube video and told them exactly what sections that were discussed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I encouraged them to go to the seminar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they'd also like to know, when is the student assembly?
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was their big question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What did they hear from their children about the student assembly?
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I don't think it happened yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or did it happen?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I do have a question, like, is it a particular bathroom or area, and could we have, like, Officer Riccardi, you know, monitor that area?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, if there's, like, a certain bathroom that, you know, this is really happening in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I also read a comment that, you know, that, you know, one parent said that their child was offered, you know, to purchase marijuana.
[Kathy Kreatz]: outside the bathroom or in the hallway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just don't know if we need to have maybe Officer Riccardi kind of rotate around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to bring it to your attention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, I'll start with Bob.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Bob, I want to thank you very much for your years of dedication.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I see your eyes light up when you go to a classroom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to a kindergarten classroom with you to pilot at the Roberts Elementary.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we had a blast together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Noah absolutely loves you and he has the same passion for history that you have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that I'm going to see you when I stop by my parents house and we go for a walk with my little nephew dog Monty and we you know we'll see you around around the neighborhood and I just want to thank you so much for you know taking time to you know to be a great mentor
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when I first started, you helped me a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just thank you so much for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was greatly appreciated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you so much for your years of service.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've just been fantastic in the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've just been everywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you just know everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And yeah, everybody says it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll be missed, but I know I'll see you around my parents' house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Anne-Marie, I want to thank you for your years of service and I think Anne-Marie was one of the first people when we first when I first started on school committee she invited me over to her house and I got to meet her whole family and she had coffee and snacks and she was so welcoming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She immediately started telling me okay well there's the MASC and you need to go to one of the meetings to you know the
[Kathy Kreatz]: general meeting to find out what the committee does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Mia, Aaron, and I went to the meeting and we learned a lot of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've been at all the events.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've seen you at all of the sporting events, the band, the Italian club, and all that you do for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just been a pleasure to work with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll be missed, and I know I'm going to see you around town.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really appreciate everything that you've done to help myself and to teach me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you've just been a great mentor and friend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You'll both be missed, and I wish you both the very best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I know, we're a little different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I have the time?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh my gosh, what do you do? Do you have.... yes, well that's just... well look at this. And I'm listening a bit and I'm like, it's right here. I'm trying to salvage the note. I'll have to rewrite it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know what I'll do?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's not much here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll turn this, okay?
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Could we, I just wasn't sure, are we meeting this Wednesday with the McGlynn teachers?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I want to know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you Miss Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miss Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, um, Superintendent Belson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to follow up with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I was in touch with Miss Simonides and I just wanted to know if something was filed with the M.I.A.A.
[Kathy Kreatz]: regarding the incident.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If you've had a chance to file that yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: did you communicate that information to the parent?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So you got the name and the person is not certified?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Christine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It does mention, I was going to ask about the cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it mentions that a large investment was made to replace and repair security cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know a lot of us were getting emails throughout the fall where a lot of parents were very concerned because a lot of cameras were out and they weren't operating.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are there any cameras that are still in need of repair or were all the cameras that were malfunctioning and not operating?
[Kathy Kreatz]: The wording is already in here, it seems like, under E. I wouldn't distinguish between out of country or in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a similar question about the forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, are the forms going to be available to the teachers with the Google Doc documents where they can go in and add their information and move it along?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I think that was discussed at the last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does the motion that this meeting be adjourned?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one very quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to make one quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are several Medford High School students who created a new educational series.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The name of the series is The Chronicles of Modern Military History.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The shows are being created right here at the Medford Community Media Station.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the replay of the first episode will be taking place this Wednesday at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Saturday, December 9th at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: on Channel 47 Verizon and Channel 3 Comcast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next week on December 14th will be episode number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All of the students that are involved in this program are writing, editing, they're doing the music, the narrating, and they're coming in after school hours and just working on this on their own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a wonderful episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've been sharing it on Facebook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna get a message over to Lisa Evangelista to ask her to share the link on the blog if anybody gets a chance to tune in and it's just a great new show that's been created by
[Kathy Kreatz]: several students, a combination of high school and vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to give a couple of mentions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's been Flood, Matt Adaletto, Justin Garland, Angel Barozo, Ian Agudo, Gavin Bibbins, and Trip Hill, and narrated by Noah Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if everybody gets a chance, if they want to tune into the station, it's just a great educational episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Could we, I just wasn't sure, are we meeting this Wednesday with the McGlynn teachers?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, okay, that's what I want to know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good, thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Vandekloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, Superintendent Belson, I just wanted to follow up with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was in touch with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Simonettis and I just wanted to know if something was filed with the MIAA regarding the incident, if you've had a chance to file that yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you communicate that information to the parent?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Not yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So you got the name and the person is not certified?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, thank you, Christine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the reports, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It does mention, I was gonna ask about the cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it mentions that a large investment was made to replace and repair security cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know a lot of us were getting emails throughout the fall
[Kathy Kreatz]: where a lot of parents are very concerned because a lot of cameras were out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they weren't operating.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are there any cameras that are still in need of repair or were all the cameras that were malfunctioning and not operating?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Were they all repaired?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to approve.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one note too.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I had a similar question about the forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, are the forms gonna be available to the teachers with the Google Doc documents, where they can go in and add their information directly onto it and then move it along?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I think that was discussed at the last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One very quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I just want to make one quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are several Mefford High School students who created a new educational series.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The name of the series is The Chronicles of Modern Military History.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The the shows are being created right here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: at the Medford Community Media Station.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the replay of the first episode will be taking place this Wednesday at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Saturday at 8 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: December 9th at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: on Channel 47 Verizon and Channel 3 Comcast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next week on December 14th will be episode number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All of the students that are involved in this program are
[Kathy Kreatz]: writing, editing, they're doing the music, the narrating, and they're coming in after school hours and just working on this on their own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a wonderful episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've been sharing it on Facebook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to get a message over to Lisa Evangelista to ask her to share the link on the blog.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If anybody gets a chance to tune in, it's just a great new show that's been created by several students, a combination of high school and vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to give a couple of mentions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's been Flood, Matt Adaletto, Justin Garland, Angel Barroso, Ian Agudo, Gavin Bibbins, and Trip Hill, and narrated by Noah Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if everybody gets a chance, if they want to tune into the station, it's just a great educational episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Chris.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Price.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are we meeting this Wednesday with the McGlynn teachers?
[Kathy Kreatz]: No.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I want to know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Van der Kloot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent Belson, I just wanted to follow up with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was in touch with Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Simonides, and I just wanted to know if something was filed with the MIAA regarding the incident, if you had a chance to file that yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Did you communicate that information to the parent?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So you got the name, and the person is not certified?
[Kathy Kreatz]: They are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the reports.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It does mention, I was going to ask about the cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it mentions that a large investment was made to replace and repair security cameras.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know a lot of us were getting emails throughout the fall where a lot of parents were very concerned because a lot of cameras were out and they weren't operating.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So are there any cameras that are still in need of repair, or were all the cameras that were malfunctioning and not operating, were they all repaired?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, I had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I had a similar question about the forms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, are the forms going to be available to the teachers with the Google Doc documents, where they can go in and add their information directly on Google and then move it along?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I think that was discussed at the last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Does the motion that this meeting be adjourned?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one very quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to make one quick announcement.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are several Medford High School students who created a new educational series.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The name of the series is The Chronicles of Modern Military History.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The shows are being created right here at the Medford Community Media Station.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the replay of the first episode will be taking place this Wednesday at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and Saturday, December 9th at 7 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: on Channel 47 Verizon and Channel 3 Comcast.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Next week on December 14th will be episode number two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All of the students that are involved in this program are writing, editing, they're doing the music, the narrating, and they're coming in after school hours and just working on this on their own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been a wonderful episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've been sharing it on Facebook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm gonna get a message over to Lisa Evangelista to ask her to share the link on the blog if anybody gets a chance to tune in and it's just a great new show that's been created by
[Kathy Kreatz]: several students, a combination of high school and vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to give a couple of mentions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's been Flood, Matt Adaletto, Justin Garland, Angel Barozo, Ian Agudo, Gavin Bibbins, and Trip Hill, and narrated by Noah Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if everybody gets a chance, if they want to tune into the station, it's just a great educational episode.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Motion to adjourn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Fritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I stopped by the library a couple weeks ago, and I have some cool news.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm not sure if everybody's seen it, but at the library, there's a new electronic sign-in iPad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so far, what the students do is they can sign in, and they can track how many students are in the library throughout the day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it electronically goes into a data, like a Google spreadsheet,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they can quickly run reports and send it to the headmaster, principals, and they can give the total number of students that are in the library at any point in time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just a great resource.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to share that news with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Gretz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say thank you also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to say thank you to all the veterans for coming out to discuss their experiences with the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to give a very special thanks to Ernst Lindsey, Bernadette Riccadeli for organizing the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to share a mention from Noah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he said he really, really enjoys doing this program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's a pleasure going to all the veterans programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He also went to the VFW program, and he showed
[Kathy Kreatz]: his collection with the Cub Scouts, Webelos, and the veterans that attended that program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's just something, his passion, that he really likes to do, and he wished he could be here tonight, but he has work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to share that with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, Superintendent Bellson, I want to thank you for 50 years of service.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm so glad that you stayed on because you... Oh, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's not... Oh, sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm so glad that you were on for our first term and you made our transition very smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're a great leader.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've always been there for questions, like everybody said, via email, phone call, late nights, late Sundays, for little things that come up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you've helped assist with, you know, parent inquiries.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I'm just – I'm really grateful and I'm very fortunate that I got to work with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, it's bittersweet news.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I wish you the best.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm, you know, happy to continue working with you for the next six months.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I actually spoke to Jill Sawyer about the robotics engineering program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so if they go to the schedule, which is three periods per day, the company who's actually doing the co-op with the students would be willing to accept the students in the afternoon.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they could work maybe a 12 to 5 schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it would still be a cooperative program, but it would have a different schedule so that the students could continue on with the calculus and the foreign language, which is something that some of the students that are juniors and seniors haven't taken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that would be satisfactory.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When I was speaking to my son, who's out on co-op, because it's a lot to juggle getting all the classes in and then going to the co-op.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's definitely something, you know, if superintendent wants to have a meeting and we can talk about all the programs and, you know, just making sure that the programs who should be on co-ops are on co-ops on the A week and the B week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did get a report in this package with who is going out on co-ops.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that'll come up later in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share that point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I noticed that it said that, you know, the students have increased GPAs and post-secondary plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just wanted to bring attention to that and increase graduation rates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's fantastic, and it sounds like you're going in the right direction, and you're involving both the vocational students and high school students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So how do the students get in touch with you?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Should they email you, or do they go through their guidance Councilor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Which students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: If students were interested and kind of spending some time with you to find out what their interests are, should they go through their guidance Councilor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: they're put in touch with you, or?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When we do get the next report, could we get a breakdown of how many students are in the co-op at each program?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious about that also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if we have good participation rates, and we're above 90%, and we have good graduation rates, and if our students are in partially meeting expectations, would that affect us and put us into a different level, or is it going to be strictly by
[Kathy Kreatz]: participation rates and graduation rates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was a little, I just didn't really know what.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is very different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: about the robotics engineering program and so if they go to the schedule which is three periods per day the company who's actually doing the co-op with the students would be willing to accept the students in the afternoon and they could work maybe a 12 to 5 schedule so it would still be a cooperative program but it would have a different schedule so that the students could continue on with their like with the calculus and
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the foreign language, which is something that some of the students that are juniors and seniors haven't taken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that would be satisfactory.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When I was speaking to my son, who's out on co-op, because it's a lot to juggle.
[Kathy Kreatz]: getting all the classes in, and then going to the co-op.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's definitely something, you know, if superintendent wants to have a meeting and we can talk about all the programs and, you know, just making sure that the programs who should be on co-ops are on co-ops on the A week and the B week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did get a report in this package with who is going out on co-op.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that'll come up later in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share that point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to say congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I noticed that it said that, you know, the students have increased GPAs and post-secondary plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to bring attention to that and increase graduation rate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds like you're going in the right direction and you're involving both the vocational students and high school students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: get in touch with you, should they email you or do they go through their guidance Councilor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Which students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: If students were, you know, interested and, you know, kind of spending some time with you to find out what their interests are, should they go through their guidance Councilor and then they're put in touch with you or?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I mean, I have
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, when we do get the next report, could we get a breakdown of how many students are in the co-op at each program?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious about that also, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if we have good participation rates and we're above 90% and we have good graduation rates,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if our students are in partially meeting expectations, would that affect us and put us into a different level?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or is it going to be strictly by participation rates and graduation rates?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was a little, I just didn't really know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is very different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the robotics engineering program and so if they go to the schedule which is three periods per day the the company who's actually doing the co-op with the students would be willing to accept the students in the afternoon and they could work maybe a 12 to 5 schedule so it would still be a cooperative program but it would have a different schedule so that the students could continue on with their like with the calculus and
[Kathy Kreatz]: and the foreign language, which is something that like some of the students that are juniors and seniors haven't taken.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think, you know, that would be satisfactory.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, when I was speaking to, you know, to my son who's out on co-op, you know, because it's a lot to juggle getting all the classes in and then going to the co-op.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's definitely something, you know, if superintendent wants to have a meeting,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we can talk about all the programs and just making sure that the programs who should be on co-ops are on co-ops on the A week and the B week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We did get a report in this package with who is going out on co-op, so I think that'll come up later in the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share that point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I noticed that it said that
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know the students have increased GPAs and post-secondary plans and you know I just wanted to bring attention to that and an increased graduation rate that's that's fantastic and it sounds like you're going in the right direction and and you're involving like both the vocational students and high school students it just sounds terrific so how do the students
[Kathy Kreatz]: get in touch with you, should they email you, or do they go through their guidance Councilor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Which students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: If students were interested and kind of spending some time with you to find out what their interests are, should they go through their guidance Councilor, and then they're put in touch with you, or?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I mean, I have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, when we do get the next report, could we get a breakdown of how many students are in the co-op at each program?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious about that also, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nelson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if we have good participation rates and we're above 90% and we have good graduation rates,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if our students are in partially meeting expectations, would that affect us and put us into a different level?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or is it going to be strictly by participation rates and graduation rates?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was a little, I just didn't really know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My name is Kathy Miles-Kreatz, and I'm running for re-election for Medford School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to simply say thank you to Henley Miller and the Democratic Ward Committee for having this candidate night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm running for re-election for Medford School Committee, and I'm a Medford High School graduate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I grew up in Medford.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My parents moved here when I was four months old.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to the Waite School, which was the neighborhood school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to the Hobbs Junior High.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to Medford High School and I graduated class of 1990.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My husband graduated Medford Vocational one year before me and my son, like his dad, is enrolled in the Medford Vocational High School and he's enrolled in the robotics engineering program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Immediately after graduating high school, I went to college and I went to Suffolk University.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I commuted and I worked two jobs while going to college so that I could maintain work and school and paying some of my education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: After I graduated college, I immediately began working at State Street.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I worked there for 13 years, and then shortly after my son, who I adopted, came over here from Korea, I wanted to work from home, so I established my own licensed family daycare business, so I could stay home and take care of him.
[Kathy Kreatz]: When he went to kindergarten, I started working at Mass Teachers Retirement System.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So shortly after my son moved on from middle school to high school,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I missed the interactions at the elementary school and the middle school levels, and I was interested in running for school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I ran the first time, and here I am running again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of the accomplishments that I have to talk about while I was on school committee in my first term were, I set out that for my plan was that I was going to go out to each and every school, meet with the principals, do a site tour, and do classroom observations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I accomplished that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and I have some great stories to share about going to the classroom observations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went out to each elementary school, and I went to the Roberts Elementary, and I sat through a little observation in the kindergarten where the students were doing K-Focus, and the little group I was put with was doing acting out dramatic play, The Three Little Pigs, and they were cutting out with construction paper, and they were kind of acting out The Three Little Pigs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been to the Columbus Elementary School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The children were writing out commercials.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Later that year, I was invited back to go see the commercials acted out, and they walked down the red carpet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been to the Brooks Elementary, where the students were dressed up to portray somebody in history, and they recited who they were representing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been to the McGlynn Elementary to see their hydroponics project, and the day I went, the lettuce that they were growing was ready to be cut,
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we had a taste testing, and the students brought in some of their salad dressings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So one of my things that I've been doing is just going out to the schools and being there and seeing what the students are doing, working with the teachers and the administrators.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I want to continue doing that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been on field trips with the middle school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We went to the Museum of Science.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been on a field trip with the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We went to the Day at the Hill.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to continue to do that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been a very big advocate for the Medford Vocational Schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have 20 programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We've reduced our students going to Minuteman, so we're saving money.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have a partnership with Everett, and we have tuition coming in from Everett.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Students are taking courses at the Medford Vocational School.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm on the Robotics Engineering Advisory Committee, and I'm just so very proud of
[Kathy Kreatz]: all of the equipment that we have in our robotics shop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We started out with just 3D printers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have a CNC, we have a mill, a lathe, we have a water jet, we have equipment that's industry ready that compares to some of our local colleges that I've seen when I've gone on college tours.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just incredible what our students know and what they're learning right now, hands on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're going on co-ops.
[Kathy Kreatz]: at companies and they're earning above $6 above minimum wage right now while they're in high school seniors.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I am so proud of our Medford Vocational and Medford High School and I'm happy to say that right now all of our students graduate from Medford High School, Medford Folk are now under one.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they can now access post-secondary education.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They can go to college.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They can go to career.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They can go in the union.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That option is there for all of our students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we made that possible with the merger that just happened.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's still a lot to be done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and I look forward to the next couple of years, so I appreciate your vote for another term on the Medford School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Remember to vote November 7th.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kathy Kreatz, re-elect Medford School Committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd like it read, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pretz has some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent, I was a little confused about the motion, so I had sent some inquiries over to Dr. Perala and the director of guidance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But what I found out through e-mail communication was that's something that's not possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Currently there isn't a way in Naviance to add a notation on the transcript.
[Kathy Kreatz]: or add an additional document, or attach a separate page.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what they can do is the guidance Councilor can write a letter of recommendation on behalf of the student, providing the information about the class rank, what the student was prior to the merger, and the student can complete a brag sheet, and that can help the guidance Councilor write the personal accomplishments about the student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but you know this is all through communications so I was wondering if you know we can I'd like to make a motion you know to invite the headmaster and the vocational director back so we can get like the final details about the class ranking because this was just me going back and forth because I was a little confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was going to be something different than what we motioned for.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's not an emergency matter but I just thought it would be a nice report if we could get a report on the breakdown of how many students are in each co-op shop and where they're working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just something really interesting but it's not an emergency report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I would like to make a motion for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to inquire about one shop in particular.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the robotics engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Originally, the robotics engineering has been the traditional vocational program, and it's going to be switching over with the graduating class of 2018.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just recently, there's been a development where there is
[Kathy Kreatz]: there is a co-op opportunity for the robotics engineering students so I just wanted to bring that up and if it could be revisited for the future students if they were interested in the co-op plan it would be ideal and I was out this weekend
[Kathy Kreatz]: going out doing the college tours, and what we saw was at Wentworth, they had the same equipment that we have in our robotics engineering shop, and my son, he's been involved in the program, he knew all the names of the machines, and in fact, we have newer machines than they have,
[Kathy Kreatz]: know, they have like a five access and we have a three access, but he knew all the machines and they had the sheet metal shop and it was just really fascinating to see that our Medford vocational school has that equipment that's college ready and when they shared some information about their co-ops, their students are college students going out and getting co-ops and they're starting out at $15 an hour
[Kathy Kreatz]: and that's what our vocational students are doing in that particular field, so I really think it's an important, you know, to have another look at the robotics engineering program because there might be an opportunity for it to remain as, you know, the A week, B week program, and this was a new development that just came about, you know, recently for an opportunity for students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to make a motion to have that revisited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank you all for coming out tonight, and it was just such great spirit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was great hearing from all of you It was just wonderful, and you know what great work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're doing at the school and you know it's coming from my other colleagues is that we were just you know talking about the different the clubs and the students want to go to one school and and
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're trying to find an equal balance, but we are very grateful to all the hard work that you do every day at the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been out to the McGlynn when I went first term, and I had the best experience in the fourth grade class going to see the hydroponics project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: helped organize a field trip between the McGlynn and the vocational school, and it was just fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had the most fun and been to the concerts and everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just love it there, and it's just a great school, and thank you all for what you do every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Katz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi Dr. Rodelli.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say I really love this idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's absolutely fantastic and it's just gonna teach the students a very valuable life lesson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just so interested and I really love Monopoly and it reminds me of the real life Monopoly game and I just love it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds like so much fun and some of the articles online that the students were faced with unexpected circumstances where
[Kathy Kreatz]: their car breaks down and they have to make a decision on what are they going to do or their vet has to go to the hospital.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, their pet has to go to the vet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it just, it just sounds like so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It really does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just, it's going to be a valuable life lesson to learn how to balance a budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know a lot of, you know, students, my son's just learning how to do a checkbook and it's just so important to learn how to spend your money and manage it and pay bills and know what you have to take priority.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's wonderful, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, you're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's good seeing you and I'm running into you everywhere with the signature board.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'm so happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was kind of brainstorming and I had some ideas and I just, I'm gonna share them, but I was thinking for beautifying some of the schools, maybe planting some perennials, like the plants that are low maintenance will come back every year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, basically when you kind of go up to the community school entrance, there's like this cement block and it's like maybe weeds now, but like if we could put some perennials there and maybe dress up some of the greens and just because that's like such an open space and everybody's going in there to access the pool.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and then talk at one point that, you know, doing space, turning it into an outside.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, peaceful place, you know, for the seniors to go at lunch and, you know, kind of just dressing it up a little bit with some benches and, you know, it would be like senior privilege where they could go out to that open space and, you know, it'd look really pretty when you're walking through to go into the other building and I had that idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then the parks, I had the parks right away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like, oh, the parks?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We could take care of the parks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't do it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have training at my work, and then I'm on the advisory committee, so I can't go that week either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd like it read, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pretz has some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent I I was a little confused about the motion so I had sent some inquiries over to Dr. Perala and the director of guidance Because what I thought was we wanted to have the individual breakdown on the transcript directly additional students class ranking But what I found out
[Kathy Kreatz]: through email communication, but that's something that's not possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, currently there isn't a way in Naviance to add a notation on the transcript or add an additional document or attach a separate page.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, what they can do is the guidance Councilor can write a letter of recommendation on behalf of the student, providing like the information about the class rank, what the student was prior to the merger, and the student can complete a brag sheet, and that can help the guidance Councilor write the personal, you know, accomplishments about the student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But, you know, this is all through communications, so I was wondering if, you know, we can, I'd like to make a motion, you know, to invite the headmaster and the vocational director back, so we can get like the final details about the class ranking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because this was just me going back and forth, because I was a little confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was going to be something different than what we motioned for.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll second it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's not an emergency matter, but I just thought it would be a nice report if we could get a report on the breakdown of how many students are in each co-op shop and where they're working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just something really interesting, but it's not an emergency report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'd like to make a motion for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to inquire about one shop in particular.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the robotics engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Originally, the robotics engineering has been the traditional vocational program, and it's going to be switching over with the graduating class of 2018.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just recently, there's been a development where there is
[Kathy Kreatz]: there is a co-op opportunity for the robotics engineering students, so I just wanted to bring that up, and if it could be revisited for the future students, if they were interested in the co-op plan, you know, it would be ideal, and I was out this weekend
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going out doing the college tours and what we saw was at Wentworth, they had the same equipment that we have in our robotics engineering shop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And my son, he's been involved in the program, he knew all the names of the machines.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in fact, we have newer machines than they have.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, they have like a five access and we have a three access, but he knew all the machines and they had the sheet metal shop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just really fascinating to see that our Medford vocational school has that equipment that's college ready.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when they shared some information about their co-ops, their students are college students going out and getting co-ops and they're starting out at $15 an hour.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's what our vocational students are doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: in that particular field.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I really think it's an important, you know, to have another look at the robotics engineering program because there might be an opportunity for it to remain as, you know, the A-Week, B-Week program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this was a new development that just came about, you know, recently for an opportunity for students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to make a motion to have that revisited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I want to thank you all for coming out tonight and it was just such great spirit.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was great hearing from all of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful and you know what great work you're doing at the school and you know it's coming from my other colleagues is that we were just you know talking about the different the clubs and the students want to go to one school and
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we're trying to find an equal balance, but we are very grateful to all the hard work that you do every day at the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been out to the McGlynn when I went first term and I had the best experience in the fourth grade class going to see the hydroponics project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I helped organize a field trip between the McGlynn and the vocational school, and it was just fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had the most fun and been to the concerts and everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just love it there, and it's just a great school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you all for what you do every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I love it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're going to get to purchase items, housing, transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Katz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Dr. Riddell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say I really love this idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's absolutely fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just going to teach the students a very valuable life lesson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just so interested.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really love Monopoly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it reminds me of the real life Monopoly game.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds like so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of the articles online that the students were faced with unexpected circumstances where
[Kathy Kreatz]: their car breaks down and they have to make a decision on what are they going to do, or their vet has to go to the hospital.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, their pet has to go to the vet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it just sounds like so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It really does.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just going to be a valuable life lesson to learn how to balance a budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know a lot of students, my son's just learning how to do a checkbook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just so important to learn how to spend your money and manage it and pay bills and know what you have to take priority.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's good seeing you and I'm running into you everywhere with the signature board.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'm so happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was, you know, kind of brainstorming and I had some ideas and I just, I'm going to share them, but I was thinking, you know, for beautifying some of the schools, maybe planting some perennials, like the plants that are low maintenance will come back every year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and basically when you kind of go up to the community school entrance, there's like this cement block and it's like maybe weeds now, but like if we could put some perennials there and maybe dress up some of the greens and just because that's like such an open space and everybody's going in there to access the pool and the gym and the summer camps and beautify it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then another idea was between the library
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the, I guess it's A building, there's some outside space and there was some talk at one point that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: doing space, turning it into an outside, peaceful place for the seniors to go at lunch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And kind of just dressing it up a little bit with some benches, and it would be like senior privilege where they could go out to that open space.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it would look really pretty when you're walking through to go into the other building, and I had that idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then the parks, I had the parks right away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like, oh, the parks?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We could take care of the parks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have training at my work, and then I'm on the advisory committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I can't go that week either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'd like it read, please.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Fritz has some questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent, I was a little confused about the motion, so I had sent some inquiries over to Dr. Perala and the director of guidance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But what I found out through email communication was that's something that's not possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, currently there isn't a way in Naviance to add a notation on the transcript
[Kathy Kreatz]: or add an additional document, or attach a separate page.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what they can do is the guidance Councilor can write a letter of recommendation on behalf of the student, providing the information about the class rank, what the student was prior to the merger, and the student can complete a brag sheet, and that can help the guidance Councilor write the personal accomplishments about the student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but you know this is all through communications so I was wondering if you know we can I'd like to make a motion you know to invite the headmaster and the vocational director back so we can get like the final details about the class ranking because this was just me going back and forth because I was a little confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was gonna be something different than what we motioned for.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's not an emergency matter, but I just thought it would be a nice report if we could get a report on the breakdown of how many students are in each co-op shop and where they're working.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just something really interesting, but it's not an emergency report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'd like to make a motion for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to inquire about one shop in particular.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the robotics engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Originally, the robotics engineering has been the traditional vocational program, and it's going to be switching over with the graduating class of 2018.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just recently, there's been a development where there is
[Kathy Kreatz]: there is a co-op opportunity for the robotics engineering students so I just wanted to bring that up and if it could be revisited for the future students if they were interested in the co-op plan it would be ideal and I was out this weekend
[Kathy Kreatz]: going out doing the college tours and what we saw was at Wentworth they had the same equipment that we have in our robotics engineering shop and my son, he's been involved in the program, he knew all the names of the machines and in fact we have newer machines than they have
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, they have like a five-axis and we have a three-axis, but he knew all the machines and they had the sheet metal shop, and it was just really fascinating to see that our Medford Vocational School has that equipment that's college-ready, and when they shared some information about their co-ops, their students are college students going out and getting co-ops, and they're starting out at $15 an hour, and that's what our vocational students are doing,
[Kathy Kreatz]: in that particular field, so I really think it's important to have another look at the robotics engineering program because there might be an opportunity for it to remain as the A week B week program and this was a new development that came about recently for an opportunity for students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would like to make a motion to have that revisited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to thank you all for coming out tonight, and it was just such great spirit It was great hearing from all of you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful, and you know what great work You're doing at the school, and you know it's coming from my other colleagues is that we were just you know talking about the different the clubs and the students want to go to one school and and
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we're trying to find an equal balance, but we are very grateful to all the hard work that you do every day at the school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been out to the McGlynn when I went first term, and I had the best experience in the fourth grade class going to see the hydroponics project.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I helped organize a field trip between the McGlynn and the vocational school and it was just fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had the most fun and been to the concerts and everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just love it there and it's just a great school and thank you all for what you do every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Katz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Dr. Riddell.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say I really love this idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's absolutely fantastic, and it's just gonna teach the students a very valuable life lesson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just so interested, and I really love Monopoly, and it reminds me of the real life Monopoly game, and I just love it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds like so much fun, and some of the articles online that the students were faced with unexpected circumstances where
[Kathy Kreatz]: their car breaks down and they have to make a decision on what are they gonna do or their pet has to go to the hospital.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, their pet has to go to the vet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it just sounds like so much fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It really does and it's gonna be a valuable life lesson to learn how to balance a budget and I know a lot of students, my son's just learning how to do a checkbook and it's just so important to learn how to spend your money and manage it and pay bills and know what you have to take priority.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it's wonderful, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, you're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's good seeing you and I'm running into you everywhere with the signature board.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'm so happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was, you know, kind of brainstorming and I had some ideas and I just, I'm going to share them, but I was thinking, you know, for beautifying some of the schools, maybe planting some perennials, like the plants that are low maintenance will come back every year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, basically when you kind of go up to the community school entrance, there's like this cement block.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's like maybe weeds now, but like if we could put some perennials there and maybe dress up some of the greens.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And just because that's like such an open space and everybody's going in there to access the pool.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and then talk at one point that, you know, doing space, turning it into an outside.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, peaceful place, you know, for the seniors to go at lunch and, you know, kind of just dressing it up a little bit with some benches and, you know, it would be like senior privilege where they could go out to that open space and, you know, it'd look really pretty when you're walking through to go into the other building and I had that idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then the parks, I had the parks right away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like, oh, the parks?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We could take care of the parks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have training at my work, and then I'm on the advisory committee, so I can't go that week either.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a motion approval?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question, Mayor Byron.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, I recall at the last meeting, the budget meeting, the library was going to have extended hours at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know if they had an update on what time the library was going to open and the time it was going to close this fall season.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Superintendent?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Update on library hours.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had one other item from, it would be considered, I think, old business.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, I just wanted to bring this up as a matter of concern related to the old business regarding the merger of the high school and the vocational technical high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's concerning to me, some of the students and the parents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I recall from the past discussion in the committee packets that it was very clearly expressed that the vocational
[Kathy Kreatz]: high school was going to maintain its own identity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, it doesn't seem like that's happening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Over the first few weeks of school, I've seen some of the recent changes implemented, and they don't identify the vocational high school from the high school counterparts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The two high schools were merged together, and they're no longer unique.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The vocational programs are made to distinguish the vocational from the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I realize the merger was beneficial to our school system for the financial reasons,
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, the vocational school has lost their identity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've heard from discouraged students, parents, you know, they're asking me why the vocational school has been written off, so to speak.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I'm upset, my family is upset.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For example, here's some examples that recently, you know, I found out, you know, currently, and we found out during the parent evening session that there is no longer a vocational
[Kathy Kreatz]: assistant principal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's all through the high school, which is a big adjustment for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The guidance council was moved over to the high school office, which is also really difficult for the students to get to and to access their guidance Councilor.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, my son himself has been going back and forth, back and forth, multiple trips, trying to see if the guidance Councilor is in the office.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's about a five minute walk to and from
[Kathy Kreatz]: to get back to class.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's just an inconvenience, and I understand that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And maybe the students need to make appointments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, the students are confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Parents are confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of the students don't realize that even though it was explained in the student assembly, their assistant principal is at the high school, they don't really think so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They don't believe it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They want to be part of the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then some other things that developed that I found out over the last couple of days is that
[Kathy Kreatz]: The vocational school won't have a class president or vice president.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is very upsetting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They will only have a med vocational representative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just very upsetting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a vice president last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was assistant president.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a valedictorian.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's all been taken away.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Who will represent the ideas and the needs of the vocational students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's difficult for one vocational student to relate all the students' needs and concerns to the high school representative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I realize it's going to be one school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but the programs operate very differently, and there needs to be representation from the vocational shop students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A high school student's perspective cannot reflect the vocational student's needs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're really different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Their days are structured differently.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like my son has one week of shop, one week of academics.
[Kathy Kreatz]: During his week of academics, he has double blocks of academics, two blocks of math, two blocks of English.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's behind on the testing schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Their timelines are very different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another thing I learned today while I was reaching out to get a copy of my son's transcript, and I received a letter along with a copy of my transcript that explained to me that from this point on, they are now under the high school number.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Last year, he had his own number, and it's on the enrollment package in this year's enrollment.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was 56 students in the class.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However,
[Kathy Kreatz]: For the transcript, it's now going to be grouped together, which changes the class ranking, and it's really upsetting to the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They didn't know this was happening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't know this was happening.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I found this out today.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was upset.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it doesn't matter to me what your class ranking is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I say do the best you can.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You've got good grades.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm not all about that, but it was so upsetting that we didn't know this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to the parent evening night last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This wasn't brought up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: None of these issues were brought up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All of this information is getting trickled down, and the students are finding it out, and they're telling me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then here's another issue, is that the SkillsUSA program, that's exclusively for vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: are we going to dissolve the SkillsUSA?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because that's for the shop students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what I wanted to do was make a motion or a resolution to request a full report for our next meeting so we can discuss the updates and ask what the community thinks about all these updates.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And maybe invite some of the vocational students and maybe some representatives from the site council of the high school and some of the administrators from the site council to come.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and talk about these updates because I think when we moved to make it one school, I clearly remember in every discussion it was told that the vocational school will have its own identity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I remember it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So well, I just that's all I remember I say that we sure are you sure and that's what my concern was Because I represent the vocational students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I popped in, you know, just last week to check with everybody Everything's going well with the new vice-principal.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's the students are confused This is a really big adjustment and it's just when we went from last year June and
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're a vocational student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This year, my son is going to graduate with a high school degree.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He loves and he's proud to be a vocational student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's shocked.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He is just shocked and upset.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted him to come tonight, but he didn't want to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's actually really busy, and he didn't want to come forward.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I'm just speaking on his behalf for his friends, and it's upsetting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't want to go on and on much more, but I just had to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've been frustrated, and I've been emailing people.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had to mention my concerns.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We found out a letter was mailed home to the families.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And even when I got the letter and it said that there's going to be a parent evening night for the high school and vocational families, I didn't know that letter meant that my son now has a different assistant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had no idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In fact, I called my colleague Paulette to say, Paulette, did you know about this?
[Kathy Kreatz]: because I was so baffled.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My sister was confused.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was getting calls from parents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What does this mean?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What happened to the vocational school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I said, I don't know anything about this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what I was confused about, because all the discussion I was hearing that the two schools were getting combined, and I wasn't sure why the numbers were separated for the high school and the vocational for grades 11 and 12, but not the freshman and sophomore classes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got to stop by the Bistro last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and it's coming along.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looks really great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The furniture was delivered.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's all, it was all packaged, so they hadn't opened it yet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I got to talk to some of the students and they're all, they're so very proud that they're helping, you know, build the bistro.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I just wanted to know, um, was there like a plan for an opening date or, um, what's the timeline for completion?
[Kathy Kreatz]: It looked really close to almost being done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I saw her, she was here last week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had some questions in notes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Christine and Superintendent Belzin for getting back to me with all my questions that I had about the bus the first week of school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was really happy to read in this report that next year a yellow bus will be provided Information will be communicated for the first week for all of the people traveling to the high school There was a lot of parents that were concerned and there was a lot of information on Facebook You know what's going on with the bus and a lot of things going back and forth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for all the communication and putting together the
[Kathy Kreatz]: part of the robocall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did hear from some people after the robocall with some concerns because
[Kathy Kreatz]: Part of the message that we relayed in an email communication wasn't included in the robocall, which caused a little confusion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So some people didn't realize there was going to be a yellow bus traveling down Salem Street.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think I communicated, Christine, and you mentioned that when the bus did arrive at the high school, it was nearly full.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to share that information with the public because I was going back with a lot of parents because they wanted to know where I got that information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, where was that coming from?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there was a lot of confusion that first week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm glad it's all rectified and thank you for handling it so well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did want to know something that came out from the discussions was
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, why did we pick that particular route for the yellow bus?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, why wasn't it other communities like South Medford, West Medford, East Medford?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I didn't have an answer for that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, I just, I was kind of waiting for a report on the yellow bus itself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that's something new that hasn't been done before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know why that particular route was used?
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was related to the yellow bus, you know, why the route was utilized on that particular day, you know, to just travel through, like, Salem Street and then go, you know, through, you know, Winthrop and then up to the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cuno?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had just a couple of follow-up questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if a parent didn't get the robocall, who can they contact to get added to the call list?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because that was also another concern that a lot of people said, I didn't get the robocall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I videoed the robocall and I put it on YouTube and then uploaded it to share it on Facebook so that they could hear it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I don't know why they didn't get it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, is it the student's homeroom teacher?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What form would it be?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Who would they actually reach out to?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is unrelated to the yellow bus,
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I also had some inquiries from students and parents who ride the Fulton Heights bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in the morning, there's been a lot of overcrowding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know I was told that last year there were two morning buses.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was an early morning bus at like 6.50, and then there was a later morning bus, not too sure what the time was.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I looked in the information you provided, and it looks like there are two buses.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it looks like they're both at the same time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know if maybe is that, I did note in here that there were two buses, Fulton Heights buses.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they do like, so one would come and another one comes right along and both kind of departed at 6 50.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And one last suggestion I heard was, can we put
[Kathy Kreatz]: the MBTA bus stops on our website, almost similar to what we have here, but the actual MBTA bus stops.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So everything's centrally located on the one page or the one website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a suggestion that came to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That would be nice.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there was a direct link, they could click on the link, and then they could navigate around from there, if that's possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, you probably have to check on that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You have the idea to go into school brains now?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that the initial question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I would assume that you had numbers in the system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't hear.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dr. Perlow, I didn't even hear what you said.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sure it's very weird.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Someone didn't get a robocall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I have access to School Brains.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got the robocall, but I went into School Brains last night just to navigate around again in preparation for this meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't recall there's an area in School Brains that I can add my contact information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm given a username and password.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Curtis.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a question, and this happened a few times last year, where what we experienced was a couple of different times, like each progress report and each report card, it wasn't the grade point average.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was the grade that was completely wrong, and it was completely wrong on school brains.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm not sure if it was because maybe somebody wasn't entering the grade or they needed some more training on how to use the school brains tool.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But when this occurred last year, it caused great stress and anxiety on the student, the family, and going back and forth between the administration and the teacher.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The student would get the report card or the progress report and the teacher was already gone for the day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the actual grade on the report card and progress report was wrong.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it even had wrong comments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So this happened to my own son.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and some friends of his.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was really concerning.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just really, really upsetting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it caused great stress and anxiety on the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, these students were B plus students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And their grade showed as a failing grade on school brains and progress report because the grades were not entered.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just want to make sure that there's precautions in place for this first term because
[Kathy Kreatz]: It didn't happen consistently with one particular class.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just, you know, randomly this one, another one, and, you know, it was, you know, it wasn't reliable.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, you know, you never knew if it was going to be accurate, and we had to back up our grades on paper and notebooks, and that was more reliable than
[Kathy Kreatz]: the school brains.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We kept track of every single grade and it was just a lot of record keeping that you have to do on your own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if you have any plans in place for this first quarter coming up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know when it did happen, you were extremely helpful, and so was the assistant principal in issuing revised progress reports and report cards.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In fact, within the next day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I really appreciate that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to make sure it was on the radar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it's on my radar.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one more.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Curtis, I wanted to know if you could put something on the website or in the instruction booklet, because what I ran into last year was that there were block out dates where you can't access your grades.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, and I had asked you, you know, why can't we see the grades?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you can't quite remember.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it had something to do with contractual.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I'm, don't recall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krebs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention we were at the West Medford Community Center the other day, and they're having a summer camp as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's ten weeks, June 26th to September 1st.
[Kathy Kreatz]: 8 AM to 6 PM, middle school, 6 to 8, and it's $1.75 a week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you only pay for the weeks you need.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to mention it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if anybody's interested, there's still spaces limited, but there's still space available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krebs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention we were at the West Medford Community Center the other day, and they're having a summer camp as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's 10 weeks, June 26 to September 1st, 8 a.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to 6 p.m.
[Kathy Kreatz]: middle school six to eight and it's 175 a week and you only pay for the weeks you need.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to mention it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if anybody's interested, there's still spaces limited, but there's still space available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kripps.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention we were at the West Medford Community Center the other day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're having a summer camp as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's 10 weeks, June 26 to September 1, 8 AM to 6 PM.
[Kathy Kreatz]: middle school, six to eight, and it's $175 a week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you only pay for the weeks you need.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to mention it, and if anybody's interested, there's still, space is limited, but there's still space available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jensen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is a great report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't want to duplicate what Erin said, but I was going to say that I thought it was a really fair grade point average, where it ranged from 2.3 to higher levels, which is good for some students who might not be at the same grade level as others.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just a wonderful, generous opportunity for our students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm glad you enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention that I went to the forum, you know, with Paulette Nye, and it was just amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she was a great, great speaker.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And everybody was so engaged.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is a great grant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I love how there's going to be more parent forums and more facility training, increased community awareness.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to make sure, because I know when the original grant was written, the expenses added up to $20,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to make sure that
[Kathy Kreatz]: there was going to be enough funding available, or if you had to add something to the budget this year, so that you could, you know, continue with the new teacher training and prevention, the presentations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wasn't sure if, you know, was this like kind of a little bit of an estimate, or do you think you'll find out?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miss Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Miss Jensen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is a great report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't want to duplicate what Aaron said, but I was going to say that, you know, I thought it was a really fair grade point average where it ranged from two point three to higher levels, which is good for some students who might not be at the same grade level as others.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just a wonderful, generous opportunity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: for our students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm glad you enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention that I went to the forum, you know, with Paula and I, and it was just amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she was a great, great speaker.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And everybody was so engaged.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is a great grant.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I love how there's going to be more parent forums and more facility training, increased community awareness.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to make sure, because I know when the original grant was written, the expenses added up to $20,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to make sure that
[Kathy Kreatz]: there was going to be enough funding available, or if you had to add something to the budget this year, so that you could continue with the new teacher training and prevention, the presentations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wasn't sure if, you know, was this like kind of a little bit of an estimate, or do you think you'll find out?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pinto.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, because I was at the DARE program at the elementary school last week, and it just got me thinking, after reading this report, I wanted to know if maybe with the cooperation with the team Medford, if we could do maybe a similar presentation, maybe in the Cameron Theater, for maybe the incoming freshmen,
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the outgoing seniors to educate them again at the high school level on drinking and driving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know there's the seminar for driving distracted, but that covers texting, being distracted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I noticed in this report that the most frequently reported risky behavior was ridden in a car with someone who was drinking or using drugs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know with the new, how the marijuana is now legal,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wasn't sure if maybe we needed to do like an upgraded training program to educate the students on, you know, the dangers of, you know, smoking marijuana, drinking and driving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I, you know, I was just, I was really thinking about that and brainstorming and wanted to ask you about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank you for the report and it was very detailed and a great job to is in to surround.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to mention the point of information for Aaron.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the crossing light at the corner of the Fulton Street in Bell's way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The timing crossing was adjusted in that was done, you know, a while ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that that was the only update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But so that's working and I've crossed myself and it gives you plenty of time to get all the way across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pinto, thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, because I was at the DARE program at the elementary school last week and it just got me thinking after reading this report, I wanted to know if maybe with the cooperation, like with the team Medford, if we could do maybe a similar like presentation, maybe in the Cameron Theater,
[Kathy Kreatz]: for maybe the incoming freshmen and the outgoing seniors to educate them again at the high school level on drinking and driving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know there's the seminar for driving distracted, but that covers texting, being distracted.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I noticed in this report that the most frequently reported risky behavior was ridden in a car with someone who was drinking or using drugs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know with the new, how the marijuana is now legal, I wasn't sure if maybe we needed to do like an upgraded training program to educate the students on, you know, the dangers of, you know, smoking marijuana, drinking and driving.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was really thinking about that and brainstorming and wanted to ask you about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to thank you for the report, and it was very detailed and a great job, too, Liz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And to Sarad, thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention the point of information for Aaron.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the crossing light
[Kathy Kreatz]: at the corner of the Fulton Street and Bellsway, the timing crossing was adjusted, and that was done a while ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was the only update, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that's working, and I've crossed myself, and it gives you plenty of time to get all the way across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You're welcome.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, there was something and I, I had some notes at home before the meeting and I forgot to bring them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had been out to see the book school and, um, when I was there for the visit, cause I was doing this for the capital plan visit, I, um, spoke with the assistant principal and we looked at the, um, outside upper play structure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a fence side, like a gate that's missing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the children, like the ball will go outside the gate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there's no, like one half, like where you can close the gate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One half is just gone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was in like October.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know if anybody's been out there to repair it, but that really needs to get done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they also needed some signage, you know, because I think some, during school hours, you know, community, you know, people are just going to use the park, but during school hours that are operational,
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they were just looking for some signage that they could put up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the intercom system wasn't working properly in their walkie talkies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The intercom in the school wasn't working properly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know if I, this was during my own visit when I conducted in like October.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: did receive some calls from parents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They were very curious and interested in finding out about the discussion we had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of them couldn't make the committee of the whole meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I sent Mr. Belson a note in asking if we could put something together on blog similar to what Lisa Evangelista posted for the grant publications.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we could put together just a brief description of the capital improvements that have been done, very similar to what we got in the breakdown
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, even with the timelines going back to 2002 so we can have that nice breakdown that we can share with the community, including some of the new, you know, proposed capital budget, um, plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and, and a lot of the community was very interested and, you know, happy to read all the, um, the posts that we shared this weekend about the grants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I wanted to thank Beverly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I ran into her at the school and we started to get inquiries already asking when we were going back to school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some parents
[Kathy Kreatz]: really didn't know that, in fact, I didn't really know that it was part of the contract that the teachers had to start school early.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I misunderstood, I thought it was administration also, so I'm glad you explained that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would there be any way to maybe just put something under the bottom explaining that as per collective bargaining agreement, the start of school would be before Labor Day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a lot of communication about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of people weren't happy about
[Kathy Kreatz]: going back to school before Labor Day, you know, I was getting inquiries myself, you know, why are we going back before Labor Day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't like that, you know, but yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to just mention, I got to attend part of the session on the November
[Kathy Kreatz]: professional development day and the presenters were excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I watched a very moving video and I sat in a group with some other teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We discussed strategies, techniques, and we broke up into groups and then everybody got to share their ideas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really educational and it was a good day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a great day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you guys the best of luck on Monday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jensen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The report was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention one of the goals for this upcoming year,
[Kathy Kreatz]: which is the online program to assist students' graduation rate, offering enrichment courses and the alternate programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, now, the information, I think it might be out now, is it online?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, do the students, was a message sent out so the students know and they can take advantage of it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or is it more of the guidance department might approach a student or parent and
[Kathy Kreatz]: let them know they think they might be a good fit for something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a cost associated with it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And how long is the course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it a six-week course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it a three-week course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just a little curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sounds exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, do the schools, um, conduct like practice drills to prepare for an emergency?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so they can time themselves because it does, I guess the device has to be applied within four minutes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: of the cardiac arrest, so I was just curious, like, if you're in the high school and it's in the front lobby and somebody's way down and they have to, you know, walkie-talkie that person, come down here, we have an emergency, they have to go get the defibrillator and then get to the person, you know, I was just curious, like, how that was going to work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share some helpful tips.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's a good idea for all of us to make sure we keep our kids safe at home by monitoring their sites and limiting the time they spend on their devices, even when they're at home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kind of implement something similar to this in your own household.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Skerry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I had been out to see the Brooks School, and when I was there for the visit, because I was doing this for the capital plan visit, I spoke with the assistant principal, and we looked at the outside upper play structure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a fence side, like a gate that's missing, so the children, like the ball will go outside the gate, so there's no, like one half where you can close the gate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: One half is just gone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that was in like October.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I don't know if anybody's been out there to repair it, but that really needs to get done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they also needed some signage, you know, because I think some during school hours, you know, community, you know, people are just going to use the park, but during school hours that are operational.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they were just looking for some signage that they could put up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The intercom system wasn't working properly in their walkie-talkies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I had done that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The intercom and the school wasn't working properly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I don't know if I, this was during my own visit when I conducted in like October.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did receive some calls from parents, they were very,
[Kathy Kreatz]: curious and interested in finding out about the discussion we had.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of them couldn't make the committee of the whole meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I sent Mr. Belson a note in asking if we could put something together on blog similar to what Lisa Evangelista posted for the grant publications.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we could put together just a brief description of the capital improvements that have been done, very similar to what we got in the breakdown
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, even with the timelines going back to 2002 so we can have that nice breakdown that we can share with the community, including some of the new, you know, proposed capital budget, um, plans.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, and, and a lot of the community was very interested and, you know, happy to read all the, um, the posts that we shared this weekend about the grants.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I wanted to thank Beverly.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I ran into her at the school and we started to get inquiries already asking when we were going back to school and some parents
[Kathy Kreatz]: really didn't know that, in fact, I didn't really know that it was part of the contract that the teachers had to start school early.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I misunderstood, I thought it was administration also, so I'm glad you explained that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would there be any way to maybe just put something under the bottom explaining that as per collective bargaining agreement, the start of school would be before Labor Day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was a lot of communication about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of people weren't happy about
[Kathy Kreatz]: going back to school before Labor Day, you know, I was getting inquiries myself, you know, why are we going back before Labor Day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't like that, you know, but yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to just mention, I got to attend part of the session on the November 8th professional development day, and the presenters were excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I watched a very moving video.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I sat in a group with some other teachers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We discussed strategies, techniques.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we broke up into groups, and then everybody got to share their ideas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was really educational, and it was a good day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a great day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wish you guys the best of luck on Monday.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Jensen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The poll was great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention one of the goals for this upcoming year, which is the online program to assist students' graduation rate, offering enrichment courses and the alternate programs.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know now, the information, I think it might be out now, is it online?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do the students, was a message sent out so the students know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: they can take advantage of it, or is it more of the guidance department might approach a student or parent and let them know they think they might be a good fit for something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there a cost associated with it?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And how long is the course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it a six-week course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is it a three-week course?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just a little curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sounds exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, do the schools, um, conduct like practice drills to prepare for an emergency?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so they can time themselves because it does, I guess,
[Kathy Kreatz]: the device has to be applied within four minutes of the cardiac arrest.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just curious, like, if you're in the high school and it's in the front lobby and somebody's way down and they have to, you know, walkie-talkie that person, come down here, we have an emergency, they have to go get the defibrillator and then get to the person.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I was just curious, like, how that was going to work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to share some helpful tips.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's a good idea for all of us to make sure we keep our kids safe at home by monitoring their sites and limiting the time they spend on their devices, even when they're at home.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kind of implement something similar to this in your own household.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Jody, you can stand here again.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Preston.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have just a couple of questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Christine, I just wanted to thank you for getting back to me about the bus and the overcrowding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Can you let me know, is it still, is there still a lot of overcrowding on bus 14 departing to high school in the afternoon?
[Kathy Kreatz]: All right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also, we were looking, me and I were looking at this report, and on page 3, could you let us know what is the after school pupil transportation encumbrance, the 26,040?
[Kathy Kreatz]: What does that relate to?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were just curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if you know what that is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The after school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But then why is it not budgeted?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then as you build, you take away from the encumbrance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did receive several calls from parents who mentioned that the day that school was open because it was very, very cold, that there was a lot of teachers absent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And most of the kids were sent to lecture halls that were not heated, and they were freezing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The children were just freezing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: For example, one student, one of his teachers was in, in all the other classes he went to freezing cold lecture halls that were not heated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just really, really, really, really cold.
[Kathy Kreatz]: students were wearing gloves and they had the little, what they're called, the heat warmers, right, they had hand warmers, passing them around, and a lot of kids got sick.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I got a lot of calls about that, and I'm not sure if, I tried to identify what area, and I just don't know, but it was mainly that it was really, really cold in high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That was my suggestion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If the lecture halls were not heated, maybe have them go to the cafeteria.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Negative motion passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Tavetano?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, gobeithio hynny.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Helo, Heidi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i ddiolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd e'n wirioneddol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, rwy'n mynd i ddiolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i ddiolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i ddiolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i ddiolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i diolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i diolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mynd i diolch i chi am y adroddiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: R
[Kathy Kreatz]: metabolic disorders.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, we have a lot of allergies in the band.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I just thought that was really nicely done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And also there was a nice write-up about the rules and the guidelines for the curfew and no tolerance in the rooms and going to bed at night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that was really detailed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ac rwy'n siŵr y byddwch chi'n mynd ymlaen gyda'r roiantau ar y cyfarfodydd ddiwethaf.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Unwaith eto, diolch yn fawr iawn i chi am eich gwybodaeth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hei.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dw i am ddweud ddiolch, ac rwy'n gwybod pa mor an
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n gofyn un cwestiwn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A oedd y sgiliau'n newydd i'r ysgol?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A oedd y sgiliau'n newid y sgiliau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A oedd e'n rhywbeth arall?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A oedd y sgiliau'n dal i fod yn gwahodd, fel ysgolau ysgol gynhadleddol yng Nghymru, ysgolau ysgol technol yng Nghymru?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A oedd y sgiliau'n newid y sgiliau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n ddiddorol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oes unrhyw gwestiynau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hwyl fawr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hwyl fawr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hwyl fawr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hwyl fawr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r pethau yma'n ymgyrchu.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r pethau yma'n ymgyrchu.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r pethau yma'n ymgy
[Kathy Kreatz]: felly i unrhyw un sy'n ddiddorol i'w ysgrifennu, rwy'n cael y fideosau YouTube, ac maen nhw'n ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dw i'n cael gweld pob peth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dw i'n cael gweld Mr. de Lever, ac roedden nhw'n gwneud y geometraeth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, pob peth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae pob peth ar gael yma heddiw.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd hynny'n dweud nad ydych chi'n teimlo teimladau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd ganddyn nhw'r fideo o'r can, ac roedd pob peth, y carolinau Christmas.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd hynny'n dda iawn, felly mae fideoau sydd ar gael ar hyn o bryd y gallwch eu gwylio, yn ogystal â'r ffotograffau a'r blogaethau a'r gysylltiadau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Hayley.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really detailed, and I wanted you to- Yeah, you look crazy when you travel, so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really, I know, in the mail summary, I thought that was really interesting, and I wanted to know if you could- Yeah, if you ever go to Disney, it's actually a pretty good list.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Explain that, you know, all the options that the students have, and the allergy-free and- Yeah, well, Disney World can be really expensive, so I think a lot of parents get nervous at first, but it's actually very doable, so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, and I just thought it was really nice that you had the allergy-free, like the gluten-free,
[Kathy Kreatz]: metabolic disorders.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, we have a lot of allergies in the band.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just thought that was really, really nicely done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, and also there was, um, um, a nice write up about the rules and the guidelines for the curfew and, you know, no tolerance in the rooms and going to bed at night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so, um, that was really detailed and,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm sure you'll go over that with the parents at the upcoming meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to say congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know how hard both of you have been working on this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just had one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would there be a new name for the school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would the school change names?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would it maybe something else?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Or would it still be separate, like Medford High School and Medford Vocational or Medford Technical High School?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would there be a name change?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Awesome job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just wanted to say thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the students, I've been hearing students are very excited about everything that's going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's very exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just hear all the good things every day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm so excited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm so excited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz on this topic?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Frazier is putting out some small, short YouTube videos, and it's getting shared by the blog.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lisa Evangelista shares them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So anybody who's interested in signing up,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I get the YouTube videos and they're just fantastic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I even got to see just everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got to see Mr. DeLaver and they were doing the Geometry Bee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything's out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And today it was, you know, teenage, you know, don't drink teenagers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they had the can video and just everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Christmas caroling.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there are videos that are out right now that you can watch as well as all the pictures and the blogs and the write-ups.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I got another update this, this actually this morning, late this morning, um, regarding the crossing light at Fulton street and the Fellsway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I have the update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm going to read it to you right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the Fulton street crossing time has been changed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's been changed for about two weeks now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the walk sign will go for up to 24 seconds.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Then it will flash walk for 13 seconds, and it will count down, and you have exactly 13 seconds to finish walking across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: With the three second do not walk, so that the lights will then signal to change, and then the cars will begin going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The traffic engineer department is also looking into adding a second crossing
[Kathy Kreatz]: in the intersection on the other side would likely make the intersection safer and work more smoothly as it would require less pushing of the pedestrian walk buttons to get from one side of the Fulton to the diagonal side across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, it's likely that this will need to be reexamined in the spring due to the weather conditions that are coming with the winter coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's difficult to paint lines and do any repaving in the winter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's something that they're going to revisit again in the February.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did test out the crossing light today with Noah three times, and you have 36 seconds, and you can get across all lanes, and you don't have to run.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can simply walk across all lanes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The traffic is stopped everywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really impressive, so I wanted to share that update with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very good, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank you very much for this very generous donation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students will really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to say, you know, thank you very much to the Bloomberg Philanthropies, and I might be saying that wrong.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it was a great day, and it was so enjoyable for the students, the administrators, the teachers, everybody there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were all involved in the exhibits, having fun, and it was so organized.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was hard to believe there was over 1,000 students there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was so organized.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a pleasure going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I got another update this morning regarding the crossing light at Fulton Street and the Fellsway, and I have the update, I'm going to read it to you right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the Fulton Street crossing time has been changed, it's been changed for about two weeks now, so the walk sign will go for up to 24 seconds, then it will flash walk for 13 seconds,
[Kathy Kreatz]: a bydda'n ymlaen y byddwch gyda'n 13 sec.
[Kathy Kreatz]: i gysylltu'n ymlaen gyda'r 3 sec.
[Kathy Kreatz]: a byddwch ddim yn ymlaen, fel y bydd y llyfrgellau'n sylweddoli i newid, ac yna bydd yr au'n dechrau mynd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Bydd y departament yng Nghymru hefyd yn edrych ar adnoddu ychydig sefydliad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar y drosglwyddiad ar
[Kathy Kreatz]: and work more smoothly as it would require less pushing of the pedestrian walk buttons to get from one side of the fulcrum to the diagonal side across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, it's likely that this will need to be reexamined in the spring due to the weather conditions that are coming with the winter coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's difficult to paint lines and do any repaving
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kress.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to thank you very much for this very generous donation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The students will really appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to say thank you very much to the Bloomberg Philanthropies, and I might be saying that wrong, but it was a great day, and it was so enjoyable for the students, the administrators, the teachers, everybody there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We were all involved in the exhibits, having fun, and it was so organized.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was hard to believe there was over 1,000 students there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was so organized.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a pleasure going.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it sounds like a great trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, I was looking on the website and some of the questions it said, you know, were to make sure you know where the embassy is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: where the hospital is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do you know, are you close to these facilities?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was one other item I read.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know if this is true, but it said that if somebody was going to be hospitalized, the hospital would only take cash and it might cost up to $100,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that the insurance that you're getting is only up to $35,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know, like I said, this is the internet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just googling information on how safe is traveling to the Dominican Republic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: just different types of things you could click on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wasn't sure if there was any factual information about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you everybody for the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I enjoyed it and Noah just wanted to say he really enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: looks forward to doing next year's program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We want him back, so.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to know about the MCAS.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Was there any discussions about rolling it out to the schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Any plans on how they're going to handle it where it's really not determined?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Are there any workshop sessions for students to get them acclimated?
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it just seems like, you know, we don't know what it's going to be like, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you also think that, because I know sometimes parents will ask or they wonder if more time is spent doing MCAS than on regular education and curriculum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you think, you know, with the testing that's going to go on like mostly in April and May, you know, will it be more extensive and will there be, will it be, you know, stressful for the students with the regular coursework and the MCAS and the
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just curious, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just want to share a point of information I've been on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you can see the full calendar, absence days, assignments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a link directly to the teacher, the grades.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They matched up to the report cards that we just got at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I needed to have another person added to my profile, sent an email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The profile got updated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really been really smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I can't even access it from my phone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A similar update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I heard from Matt Hartman in State Senator Jalen's office, and with some good news that they are going to add some additional time on to the crossing light, where you cross over at the corner of Fulton Street and Fellsway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would still recommend that you cross over to the next island, press the next button, and then cross over rather than trying to make it all the way across five lanes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, just for safety, it's just a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't get a date on when that's going to happen, but he's going to be calling back, so we'll get the word out here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This cuts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it sounds like a great trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know I was looking on the website and some of the questions it said, you know, were to make sure, you know, where the embassy is, where the hospital is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So do you know and are you close to these?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was one other item I read, and I don't know if this is true, but it said that if somebody was going to be hospitalized,
[Kathy Kreatz]: The hospital would only take cash and it might cost up to $100,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know that the insurance that you're getting is only up to $35,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know, like I said, this is the internet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just Googling information on how safe is traveling to the Dominican Republic and just different types of things you could click on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I wasn't sure if there was any factual information about that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, and I didn't know if, like, the hospitals only accepted cash and, you know, there wasn't that available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Miss Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, thank you everybody for the program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was, it was a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I enjoyed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, Noah just wanted to say he really enjoyed it and looks forward to doing next year's program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We want him back.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I'm sorry, just... Oh, those are... Oh, thank you, probably.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just want to know about the MCAS.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Was there any discussions about rolling it out to the schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, any plans on how they're going to handle it where it's really not determined?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Like, are there any workshop sessions for students and to get them acclimated?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you also think that, because I know sometimes parents will ask or they wonder if more time is spent doing MCAS than on regular education and curriculum.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you think, you know, with the testing that's going to go on, like mostly in April and May, you know, will it be more extensive and will there be, will it be, you know, stressful for the students with the regular coursework and the MCAS and the
[Kathy Kreatz]: the prep work, and I'm just curious.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just want to share a point of information I've been on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you can see the full calendar, absence days, assignments.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a link directly to the teacher, the grades.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They matched up to the report cards that we just got at the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I needed to have another person added to my profile, sent an email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The profile got updated.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's really been really smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I can't even access it from my phone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it's mm-hmm
[Kathy Kreatz]: A similar update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I heard from Matt Hartman in State Senator Jalen's office, and she, you know, with some good news that they are going to
[Kathy Kreatz]: add some additional time on to the crossing light, where you cross over at the corner of Fulton Street and Fellsway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They're adding on an additional seven seconds to give people more time to get across.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I would still recommend that you cross over to the next island, press the next button, and then cross over, rather than trying to make it all the way across five lanes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, just for safety, it's just a good idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I didn't get a date on when that's going to happen, but he's going to be calling back.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So we'll get the word out.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yr aelodau sy'n ymdrech.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yr aelodau sy'n ymdrech.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yr aelodau sy'n y
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r ffyrdd yn ffyrdd y byd, felly mae'n rhaid i ni gysylltu â'r byd a'r swyddi DCR.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yr hyn rwyf wedi'i wneud ers ein cyfarfodydd diwethaf yw rwyf wedi ymgysylltu â'r ymgeisydd gwleidyddol y polisi yn fy ymgeisydd, ynglyn â Mir a John Falco, ac llawer o'r cymuned arall, ac unrhyw un o'r bobl sy'n ymwneud â Sheryl Rodriguez, ac mae'r cymuned, fyfyrwyr, polisi a myfyrwyr yn ymdrechu'r angen ar gyfer ymgyrch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly rwyf wedi'i gysylltu â'r
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pat Jalen's office and spoke to Matt Hartman, and he let me know that the DCR is going to send out some rangers this week to monitor the crosswalks at Park Street and Fellsway, I'm sorry, yeah, Park Street and Fellsway and Fulton Street and Fellsway to determine if they can put crossing guards there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Matt will stay in touch with the DCR on the progress and the findings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: roedden nhw'n gofyn gyda Deyrnas Unedig y Deyrnas Unedig i gofyn iddyn nhw os ydynt yn gallu newid y cyflawniad ar y croeso pedestrian.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nid ydyn nhw'n gwybod'r effaith o'r gofyn hwn, ond byddent yn dal i ddod â'r Deyrnas Unedig i weld a oes unrhyw beth y gallan nhw ei wneud i wella'r croeso Felswyth ac i wneud yn ddiogel ar gyfer yr holl bywydau yn y dyfodol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yn ogystal â hyn, roeddwn i'n cael gofyn o swyddog
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n gwybod bod eich bobl hefyd wedi bod ym mhobl gyda'r DCR a'r swyddog ym Mhrifysgol, Jalen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maen nhw'n ymddangos, maen nhw wedi bod ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl ym mhobl y mhobl ym mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y mhobl y m
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n gysylltu â nhw ac roeddwn i'n gwybod y byddent yn gallu gwneud ymdrechion arall y flwyddyn nesaf.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd y cyhoeddiad hwnnw'n cael ei roi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nid ydyn ni'n siŵr y byddai hynny'n rhywbeth y gallent ei wneud, ond roeddem yn gofyn os y gallent ddangos y ffyrdd arall y flwyddyn nesaf a gwneud ymdrechion arall o'r secsiwn hwnnw.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly dyna oedd y newidiad.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Byddwn i'n ymwneud ymlaen at hyn gyda'r swyddfeydd iawn ac yn darparu unrhyw newidiadau newydd yr oeddwn i'n cael.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cheryl,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Crutts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n mwynhau'r topïau rydych chi wedi'u dewis.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Maen nhw'n ddweud, rwy'n mwynhau eu clywed amdanyn nhw.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol iawn, pob peth, gan gynnwys y myfyrwyr sy'n gweithio gyda'r brifysgol, ymddygiad, ymddygiad, leihau'r amgylcheddau, ymddygiadau positif.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dyma'n ymddygiad gyda'r hyn rydyn ni'n cael yn y gwaith rwy'n ei wneud,
[Kathy Kreatz]: pan ddechreuwyd y Deyrnas Unedig i siarad am leiaf, maes, cerddoriaethau leiaf.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol iawn i'r peth rwyf wedi'i wneud yn ddiweddarach.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Diolch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddech chi'n ddiolch i ddod ymlaen.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dwi'n gwybod, mae'n ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yr un peth yr oedd Pauline wedi'i ddweud oedd, roedd y myfyrwyr yn gwneud gwaith gwych, roedd hi'n ddiddorol, roedd hi'n gwych, roedd hi'n gwych.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd yn byw byw, roedd yn ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dwi'n ddiolch iawn na fyddai'n gallu ei wneud.
[Kathy Kreatz]: No, she's good.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Now you're better.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was blocking it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I'm going to provide an update on the crossing guide on the corner of Fulton Street and Fellsway and Park and the Fellsway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The road is a state road, so we have to contact the state and the DCR office.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What I've done since our last meeting is I've attended the police neighborhood meeting in my neighborhood, along with Mayor and John Falco, and a lot of the other community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And another person there was Sheriff Rodriguez.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the community, parents, police, and students expressed the need for a crossing guide.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I reached out to state,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pat Jalen's office and spoke to Matt Hartman, and he let me know that the DCR was in touch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The DCR is going to send out some Rangers this week to monitor the crosswalks at Park Street and Fellsway.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry, yeah, Park Street and Fellsway and Fulton Street and Fellsway to determine if they can put crossing guards there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Matt will stay in touch with the DCR on the progress and the findings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Additionally,
[Kathy Kreatz]: they made a request with the engineering department at the DCR to ask them if they can change the timing on the pedestrian crosswalk.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They don't know the outcome of this request, but they will continue to stay in touch with the DCR to see if there's anything they can do to improve the Fellsway crossing and make it safer for all residents in the neighborhood.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Additionally, I received a call from State Rep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Paul Donato's office
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he let me know that his folks have also been in touch with the DCR and State Senator Jalen's office.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're both on target.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They've both been in touch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're just waiting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess the funds are limited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they're going to do an evaluation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Another concern that Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rodriguez brought up was the timing of the evaluation that they're doing is this week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there are two days with no school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did reach back to them and let them know that, you know, would they possibly be able to do another evaluation next week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That request was put in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We're not too sure if that's something that they can do, but we did ask if they can send the ranges out there next week and do another evaluation of that section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, that was the update.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'll continue to monitor this with both offices and provide any new updates that I get.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, Cheryl, did you want to say anything?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm very interested in the topics that you selected.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm very interested in hearing about it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just sounds wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything, including working with at-risk students, identification intervention, safer spaces, positive attitudes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This is similar to what we had in my work, where the police department came in to just talk about
[Kathy Kreatz]: safe space, walking in safe areas, just very interesting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's very similar to something I recently went to myself.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say it was a great job at the debate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was really fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The same thing that Paulette said was the students did a great job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was entertaining.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was informative.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was real life.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm so glad it could be a game.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just I had some of the same questions that Emory had in Tony.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You answered them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also wanted to thank Superintendent Belsen for personally calling some parents back on
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really a great, a lot of help from everybody, and a lot of the answers were handled very well, and I appreciate it, I really do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to mention, I did follow up with Mr. Johnson regarding the Fulton Street and the Fellsway stop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they no longer use that as a bus stop, so they don't cross the students, because I had contacted him and he spoke back, got back to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It used to be a popular crossing area when St.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Francis was open for parochial school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They don't use that any longer, and they discourage students from crossing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In fact, they re-roaded the buses to have them stop on the appropriate sides of the Fells Way,
[Kathy Kreatz]: to get to their homes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did clarify that with Mr. Johnson after our last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also spoke to him and he said that they're doing great with their crossing guard at the Roberts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, it's very busy and it's very congested.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in fact, they might need two crossing guards because of the narrow streets and
[Kathy Kreatz]: making sure that students cross safely, and having somebody direct the traffic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just very busy in that area, as well as the Brooks, which we're all aware of.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to definitely mention that, because he mentioned that to me, that if there was any way to get another crossing guard, that would be helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So maybe that's something that we would have to look at.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just, I had some of the same questions that Emory had and Tony, you answered them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also wanted to thank superintendent Belson for, you know, personally calling some parents back on,
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was, you know, really a great, um, a lot of help from everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you know, you know, a lot of the answers were, you know, handled very well and, and I appreciate it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kritz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I want to mention, I did follow up with Mr. Johnson regarding the Fulton Street and the Fellsway stop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they no longer use that as a bus stop, so they don't cross the students, because I had contacted him, and he spoke back, got back to me.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It used to be a popular crossing area when St.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Francis was open for parochial school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They don't use that any longer, and they discourage students from crossing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: In fact, they re-roaded the buses to have them stop on the appropriate sides of the Fells Way,
[Kathy Kreatz]: to get to their homes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did clarify that with Mr. Johnson after our last meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I also spoke to him and he said that they're doing great with their crossing guard at the Roberts.
[Kathy Kreatz]: However, it's very busy and it's very congested.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And in fact, they might need two crossing guards because of the narrow streets and
[Kathy Kreatz]: making sure that students cross safely, and having somebody direct the traffic.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just very busy in that area, as well as the Brooks, which we're all aware of.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to definitely mention that, because he mentioned that to me, that if there was any way to get another crossing guard, that would be helpful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So maybe that's something that we would have to look at.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i wedi ysgrifennu'r un cwestiwn ar y ffordd y byddwn i'n golygu, oherwydd roedd hynny'n bet
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n brosiect gwych ac rwy'n ddiolch iawn bod gennym y cyllideb hwnnw.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol iawn gyda'r holl ymdrechion, mae'n ddangos iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy am gwybod, Stephanie, a ydych chi'n gwybod, mewn y sgwrs hefyd, y byddwch chi'n ymdrech drwy ble mae Colin Briggum?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Could I just ask one question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I almost missed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Pat, I wanted to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to ask just a couple questions for the upcoming school year, you know, in terms of the transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I know last year, um, there was a plan failed trip between, um, the elementary school and the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I almost missed the opportunity to ask for the funding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I wanted to mention it now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if it's a good time, but I wanted to mention that, um,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did talk to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lasky, and she was interested in doing another field trip between the elementary school and the vocational school, like the biotech.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's going to be having another aquaponics.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to mention, I don't know if it's something that I should put on the agenda, because it would be something that we would be doing in the spring, you know, once they're all set with their program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll wait.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's what I'll probably do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'll just accept 2016.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I also wanted to mention that,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to make sure that it was extended to all the elementary schools who were, you know, wanted to plan a field trip.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, the ideal grade, you know, seemed to be like the fourth grade or fifth grade level because they could understand and they were, you know, doing the science program very similar to the vocational biotech and biotech and, um, engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they also went for a walk in the fells.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they were old enough to understand in the same type of science program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to make that mention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I haven't heard from other elementary schools, but I think it was a great, great day, and it was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I loved it, and I don't wanna forget and miss the opportunity, so I wanted to mention it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, motion approved.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one more question that's different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, it, it has to do with the,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know, Pat, you helped answer the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has to do with the MBTA, the S-pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't know if there was, you know, if, you know, do we previously, you know, provide the middle schools with the S-pass, like the MBTA S-pass for students at the discounted rate?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I reached out to my niece who was, you know, when she was at Arlington in her middle school,
[Kathy Kreatz]: she got the discounted student pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if it was something that we did or we didn't do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And maybe some people are using it in addition to the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know we had the parent who was asking if we did provide those passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just didn't know where that stood and if it was something that we were going to explore getting those S passes for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did check around with the META.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it is something that would have to go through the school system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: not necessarily the MBTA, but it would be something that would be managed between the school system, you know, to, you know, to get those passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if it was something that we were going to pursue or maybe do like a survey to find out how many middle school parents would be interested in getting the pass, you know, to see if it was worthwhile to put forward for the next school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, could I just ask a question before we do that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question I was waiting to ask.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, because I know the results are coming out this week,
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the parents or the students who are 10th graders, who are now juniors, they're going to get their results.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they need to know if they have to take the retest as soon as possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How quickly is that information going to be made available to those parents and the students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know that there was prep work that was done, MCAS prep that's done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: what are the plans for that, and are those students, if they have to take the retest, where the MCAS 2.0 isn't gonna be out till next spring, the students have to take the retest coming up this November, because that's, I don't know the exact date, but it's November, so what are the plans?
[Kathy Kreatz]: My son's a junior, and this is the big grade we're waiting for, and I know there's a lot of other parents out there
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's, you know, a lot of anxiety around that, you know, scoring and, you know, and where is the new test, you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Right.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's a concern because that was a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was like a six week program, you know, for the students who needed help with either math or the English.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, you know, you know, is I'd like to I don't know if I could make a motion that we can make some budget money available for those students, you know, to get the prep and the assistance they need.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, to help them so they can graduate, because this is a big deal and, you know, students need the assistance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, some of them struggle with testing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of the strategies I know, you know, that the students learned was, you know, helpful, and the repetition, you know, and where there was a break over the summer and, you know, things are, you know, getting back into the swing of things, you know, I think it's definitely something that we need to make a priority for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i wedi ysgrifennu'r un cwestiwn ar hyn o bryd am The Fellsway, oherwydd roedd hynny'n beth rydyn ni'n siarad am yn ysgol y flwyddyn ddiwethaf.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, rwy'n gobeithio bod pawb sydd wedi ysgrifennu yr un peth yr oeddwn i wedi ysgrifennu, ac mae hwn yn rhaglenni gwych, ac rwy'n hapus iawn bod gennym hynny'r cyflawni.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddiddorol gyda'r holl ymdrechion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ddangos iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n eisiau gwybod, Stephanie, ydych chi'n gwybod, fel
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that's a really high traffic area also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My mother actually got hit in that crosswalk a few years ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think there's a lot of traffic, you know, with people crossing over to go to Colleen's and over to the other side.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it just seems like a really congested area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to just mention, I know it's not really
[Kathy Kreatz]: part of the school zone, but where the money was going to be funded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It could be anywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: yn ymdrechu i wneud hynny hefyd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A ydych chi'n gwybod a yw'r traffig wedi'i wella ym Mhrifysgol Broke?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n gwybod ei bod nhw eisiau cael ymddiriedolaeth polisi yno, pan fydd rhywbeth mewn lle, ac rydw i wedi siarad gyda'r argyfwng, sy'n gwneud hynny, a dweud, mae'n edrych yn anodd iawn, ac nid yw'r bobl yn stopio, neu mae'n stopio, ond yna maen nhw'n mynd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: ac yna maen nhw'n stopio.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dydyn ni ddim, dwi ddim yn gwybod pam, oherwydd mae'n sefydliad bwysig.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dw i'n gwybod, pan fyddwn i'n mynd yno ac rydw i'n defnyddio'r croesawd, mae'r carau bob amser yn stopio.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yna oes cwestiwn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n ystafell y cwricwlwm yn yr wythnos diwethaf, ac roedd Dr. Riccio a Dr. Parlow yn ymwneud ag eich bod nhw'n mynd i roi iddyn nhw i'r athrawon
[Kathy Kreatz]: dwi'n gobeithio sylfaenwyr, yr un siarad yw'r ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael, ac mae llawer o'r rhanwyr, y siarad yw'r siarad yw'r siarad ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn yr ysgol ar gael yn
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, diolch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dydw i ddim yn gwybod a oedd ganddyn nhw lawer o amser i bawb... Dydw i ddim yn gwybod.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dydw i ddim yn gwybod am y cyfnod, mewn gwirionedd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, byddwn ni'n edrych ymlaen, diolch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r adroddiad wedi'i leihau'n ffyrdd, Mae'r ad
[Kathy Kreatz]: i gofyn am y cyllideb, felly roeddwn i eisiau ei gysylltu ar hyn o bryd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nid wyf yn gwybod a oedd hynny'n amser da, ond roeddwn i eisiau gysylltu ar hyn o bryd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n siarad gyda Ffrain Lasky ac roedd hi'n mwynhau gwneud ymdrechion ffyrdd arall rhwng Ysgol Ysgolaethol a'r Ysgol Gwybodaethol fel y Biotech.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Bydd hi'n mynd i gael un o'r aquaponics arall.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention, I don't know if it's something that I should put on the agenda, because it would be something that we would be doing in the spring, you know, once they're all set with their program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, dyna'r hyn rydw i'n ei ddysgu.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, byddwn i'n ymwneud â'r 2016.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Iawn, yn siŵr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: roedd y gradd ideol yn edrych fel y gradd ffwrdd neu'r gradd ffwrdd, oherwydd roeddent yn gallu deall, ac roeddent yn gwneud y rhaglen gwyddonol yn unigol iawn i'r biotech a'r ingeniadau, ac roeddent hefyd wedi mynd i ffwrdd yn y felgell, felly roeddent yn ddigon oedol i ddeall mewn y math o rhaglen gwyddonol unigol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly roeddwn i eisiau gwneud hynny'n ymwybodol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Dydw i ddim wedi clywed o'r ysgolion ysgolion eraill, ond rwy'n credu ei fod yn
[Kathy Kreatz]: ac roedd hynny'n ddiddorol iawn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n hoffi hynny, ac rydw i ddim eisiau ei gobeithio, ac roeddwn i'n eisiau y cyfle, felly roeddwn i'n eisiau ei gysylltu.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'n ymwneud â'r—ac rwy'n gwybod bod Pat wedi'i helpu i gysylltu â'r cwestiwn—mae'n ymwneud â'r MBTA, y SPAS, ac dydw i ddim yn gwybod a oedd
[Kathy Kreatz]: A ydych chi'n gwybod, ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi'n gwybod, a ydych chi
[Kathy Kreatz]: yn gofyn os ydyn ni'n darparu'r ysgrifennydau hynny, ac nid oeddwn i'n gwybod pan oedd hynny'n dod, ac os oedd hynny'n rhywbeth rydyn ni'n mynd i'w ysgrifennu, gael yr ysgrifennydau hynny ar gyfer y myfyrwyr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i'n edrych ymlaen gyda'r MBTA, ac mae'n rhywbeth a byddai'n rhaid mynd drwy'r system ysgol, nid yn unig yn y MBTA, ond byddai'n rhywbeth a byddai'n cael ei gyrraedd rhwng y system ysgol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: i ddod â'r cyfrifiadau hynny, felly dydw i ddim yn gwybod a oedd hynny'n rhywbeth rydyn ni'n mynd i'w ymdrechu, neu efallai i wneud cyfrifiad i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i ddod o hyd i
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roeddwn i eisiau gwybod, oherwydd rwy'n gwybod bod y canlyniadau'n dod allan y dydd.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, mae'r roeddwyr, neu'r myfyrwyr sy'n ymgynghoriwyr, sy'n nawr ymgynghorwyr, ac rydyn nhw'n mynd i gael eu canlyniadau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: maen nhw'n rhaid gwybod os ydyn nhw'n rhaid cymryd y retest yn ystod y gofyn.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Pa mor cyflymder y byddai'r wybodaeth hwnnw'n cael ei wneud ar gael i'r rhanfyrwyr a'r myfyrwyr, oherwydd rwy'n gwybod bod yna gwaith ymarferol sy'n cael ei wneud, ymgyrch MCAS sy'n cael ei wneud, a beth yw'r cynllunau ar hynny?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A yw'r myfyrwyr, os ydyn nhw'n rhaid cymryd y retest, lle nid yw'r MCAS 2.0 yn mynd i mewn i'r blwyddyn nesaf,
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r myfyrwyr yn rhaid cymryd y retest yn dod i mewn ystod Ysgol, oherwydd dydw i ddim yn gwybod'r dyfodol, ond mae'n Ysgol.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, rwy'n gobeithio yw'r cynllunau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Felly, beth yw'r cynllunau?
[Kathy Kreatz]: F
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae hynny'n broblem, oherwydd roedd hynny'n rhaglenni gwych.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Roedd hwnnw fel rhaglenni gweithredol, i'r myfyrwyr sydd angen help gyda math neu Inglis.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nid ydw i'n gwybod a ydw i'n gallu gwneud ymdrech y gallwn wneud llawer o arian cyllid ar gael i'r myfyrwyr hynny i gael y prep a'r help y maen nhw'n ei angen i'w helpu fel y gallan nhw graddio, oherwydd mae hynny'n beth fawr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mae'r myfyrwyr angen y help.
[Kathy Kreatz]: mae rhai ohonyn nhw'n ymwneud ag ysgrifennu.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Rwy'n gwybod bod y strategaethau y mae'r myfyrwyr wedi'u ddysgu yn ddefnyddiol, ac mae'r argyfwng, pan oedd cymorth dros y blwyddyn, ac mae'r pethau yn mynd yn ôl i'r sgwrs o bethau, rwy'n credu bod hynny'n rhywbeth y mae'n rhaid i ni wneud yn gyntaf ar gyfer y myfyrwyr.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Byddwn i gyda'r cyhoeddiadau.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yn ystod ein bod ni'n cael y sgwrs, byddwn ni'n gweld lle rydyn ni'n
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz, did you wish to speak?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had written down the same exact question about the Fells Way, because that was what we were talking about last school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, so I mean, everything Erin mentioned was exactly what I had written down.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And this is a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm so glad that we got that funding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just terrific with all the crosswalks, so dangerous.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to know, Stephanie, do you know in the square also where you cross over where Colleen Brigham's is?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that's a really high traffic area also.
[Kathy Kreatz]: My mother actually got hit in that crosswalk a few years ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think there's a lot of traffic, you know, with people crossing over to go to Colleen's and over to the other side.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it just seems like a really congested area.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to just mention, I know it's not really
[Kathy Kreatz]: part of the school zone, but where the money was going to be funded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It could be anywhere.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And do you know, has, um, has the traffic improved at the Brooke school?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I know they wanted to get, you know, police, um, enforcement out there, um, until something is in place.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I did talk to the crossing guard who does that, you know, that, that section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she said, um, it's still really busy and people aren't stopping or they're stopping, but then they're going and then they're stopping.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it's not like really,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know why, maybe because it's a busy section.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's, I think it's, it's my Michael.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think my mic is on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: OK.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Good to know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mrs. Craig?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I have a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was at the curriculum night last week, and Dr. Riccio and Dr. Perla mentioned that they're going to be giving the parents their IDs and, I guess, passwords.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the same night as the open house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And a lot of parents, the night of the curriculum night, mentioned that they wanted to have the school brains maybe on a different night, because there would be too much going on the same night as the open house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it can be a little busy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to mention that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there's going to be plans to have maybe a couple different sessions for parents,
[Kathy Kreatz]: who might need help or have questions when it's rolled out to the parents, because I don't think it's rolled out for parents right now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just didn't know if there'd be enough time for everybody to do the open house.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Could I just ask one question?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I almost missed it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Pat, I want to thank you for the report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just wanted to ask just a couple of questions for the upcoming school year, you know, in terms of the transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know last year there was a planned field trip between the elementary school and the high school, and I almost missed the opportunity
[Kathy Kreatz]: to ask for the funding.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to mention it now.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know if it's a good time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I wanted to mention that I did talk to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lasky, and she was interested in doing another field trip between the elementary school and the vocational school, like the biotech.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's going to be having another aquaponics.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I wanted to mention, I don't know if it's something that I should put on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because it would be something that we would be doing in the spring.
[Kathy Kreatz]: once they're all set with their program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, so okay, that's what I'll probably do.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We'll just accept 2016.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also wanted to mention that I wanted to make sure that it was extended to all the elementary schools who wanted to plan a field trip,
[Kathy Kreatz]: The ideal grade seemed to be like the fourth grade or fifth grade level, because they could understand, and they were doing the science program very similar to the vocational biotech and engineering.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they also went for a walk in the fells.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they were old enough to understand in the same type of science program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to make that mention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I haven't heard from other elementary schools, but I think it was a great, great
[Kathy Kreatz]: and it was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I loved it and you know, I don't wanna forget and miss the opportunity, so I wanted to mention it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Superintendent, would you like to?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one more question that's different.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has to do with the, and I know Pat, you, you helped answer the question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It has to do with the MBTA, the S pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I didn't know if there was,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, if, you know, do we previously, you know, provide the middle schools with the S pass, like the MBTA S pass for students at the discounted rate?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know I reached out to my niece who was, you know, when she was at Arlington in her middle school, she got the, you know, the discounted student pass.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if it was something that, you know, we did or we didn't do, and maybe some people are using it, you know, in addition to the high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know we had the parent who was,
[Kathy Kreatz]: asking if we did provide those passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just didn't know where that stood and if it was something that we were going to explore, getting those S passes for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did check around with the MBTA, and it is something that would have to go through the school system, not necessarily the MBTA.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But it would be something that would be managed between the school system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, to, you know, to get those passes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't know if it was something that we were going to pursue or maybe do like a survey to find out how many middle school parents would be interested in getting the pass, you know, to see if it was worthwhile to put forward for the next school year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have received emails.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Perfect.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second by?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, could I just ask a question before we do that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a question I was waiting to ask.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, because I know the results are coming out this week.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so the parents or the students who are 10th graders, who are now juniors, they're going to get their results.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they need to know if they have to take the retest as soon as possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How quickly is that information going to be made available to those parents and the students?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I know that there was prep work that was done, MCAS prep that's done.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And what are the plans for that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And are those students, if they have to take the retest, where the MCAS 2.0 isn't going to be out till next spring, the students have to take the retest coming up this November?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because that's, I don't know the exact date, but it's November.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what are the plans?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, my son's a junior, and this is the big grade we're waiting for.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know there's a lot of other parents out there, so it's, you know, a lot of anxiety around that, you know, scoring and, you know, and where is the new test, you know?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that's a concern, because that was a great program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was like a six-week program for the students who needed help with either math or the English.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know if I could make a motion that we
[Kathy Kreatz]: can make some budget money available for those students to get the prep and the assistance they need to help them so they can graduate.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because this is a big deal, and students need the assistance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of them struggle with testing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of the strategies I know that the students learned was helpful, and the repetition.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And where there was a break over the summer,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, things are getting back into the swing of things.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think it's definitely something that we need to make a priority for the students.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to mention I was looking at the numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have the numbers from last year on my phone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The Columbus did have the average class size for kindergarten was 17.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that is a jump for the Columbus School in the kindergarten.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, that would be four students, you know, average per kindergarten class.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That is a jump.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, that was the significant jump in all of the different elementary schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The other schools stayed the same.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It seems like the population is growing in the Columbus area, you know, for kindergarten.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I agree with Paulette that I think we need to kind of
[Kathy Kreatz]: take a look at it and make sure that the teachers are okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if they need any aids, because that would be a four students in kindergarten.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, but the, I did look at the other numbers in the middle school, um, was comparably very much the same as last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So, I mean, it was like significant jump, but not a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much for the opportunity, and thank you for the vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to know, I got some calls from some parents with the election on September 8th, where it's the first, you know, full week of school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There are some concerned parents that, you know, there could be some security issues with the people coming in to vote.
[Kathy Kreatz]: at the different elementary schools.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Some of them are concerned enough that they don't want to send their children to school on that day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And they recall that, you know, usually schools close on election day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what type of security and, you know, what will be done at the schools, Superintendent, just so that we can make the public aware?
[Kathy Kreatz]: So there'll be a different entrance?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the police will be on?
[Kathy Kreatz]: On all day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: There'll be coverage even during the day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Full coverage?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, full coverage.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you think we could have a robocall where just the night before a call could go out to all of the community letting them know that there will be police and there'll be separate entrances just so their parents are comfortable that their children will be safe in school that day?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yep.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And could we also ask if Lisa would be able to do the MS blog?
[Kathy Kreatz]: A little note on that and then we can share that with the public.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So is that in the plans?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Cassie Gretsch.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Patterson.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Very nice to meet you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for your service.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And your resume was really excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really enjoyed reading it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I read in the resume that at the South Middlesex Vocational Technical, you had the in-house payroll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to know what your thoughts were about getting used to a different payroll system, the conference payroll, and what you would do to get accustomed to it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to get familiar with it or are you familiar with it and maybe you could share that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I did have another question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might be similar to some of the other questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I had a lot of the same questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm really kind of going through my notes here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So have you ever had to
[Kathy Kreatz]: attend a school committee meeting, speak before the school committee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If not, it's fine.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just curious if you've ever been to a meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have one question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's in regards to the bus schedule.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What if a parent called you up or even a neighbor that was near
[Kathy Kreatz]: a bus stop that the person was very unhappy with the bus stop.
[Kathy Kreatz]: This happens and they want the bus stop moved as soon as possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That is an ongoing concern that comes up every year where people who don't have children going to school live near a bus stop and they're just not happy with the bus being in their vicinity.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So what would you do about something like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: How would you approach
[Kathy Kreatz]: that person?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nice to meet you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nice to meet you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to know, have you ever had to submit reports to the superintendent or the school committee at a priority request where maybe we might ask for the breakdown of expenses?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Have you ever had to do anything like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just have another question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Have you ever had to submit or run the payroll for the teachers or submit monthly reports to the retirement board or anything like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: He's getting tired.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We should read name tags.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, you know, I'm older.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi, very nice to meet you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Nice to meet you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Hi.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So Pat, actually she oversees the payroll and we have Hopper's payroll.
[Kathy Kreatz]: How do you feel about getting accustomed to a new payroll system, leaving Munis and transitioning over to Hopper's?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And so another part of Pat's responsibility with the bus schedule is the
[Kathy Kreatz]: the coordination of the homeless student transportation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Have you ever been involved with anything like that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, Jamila, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Crutch has a question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's more of like an informational question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wanted to know about the new system.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know, Pat, if the new system allows parents to like, I don't know, like create it, download an app or anything like that, or where they can create a username and password, and if they had an account, they would get a message, like a text message or an email, if it was changed, you know, and then they could check before they go to the game, like make sure I don't get an email or a text message before we head off.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Over the weekend while I was away, Lisa Evangelista, the PR person,
[Kathy Kreatz]: She shared an article that was in the Boston Globe when the Salamanders were released that made it to the Globe.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was away, out of town, and I was notified in an email.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was so happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was like, oh my gosh, this article in the paper is about the Salamanders.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I mean, I think, I mean, when I first ran for office, I wanted to do my own PR.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to capture every story.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to get every picture.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to get it out there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I created a website.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I couldn't do my job at work and then on the school committee and keep up with the pictures and the articles and the stories, but I wanted to.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I couldn't.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I tried.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I feel like, I think I almost tried to mimic what Lisa was doing for the whole community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's like a job on its own.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, when I would go home at night, and I would try to do my pictures, and do my posts, and do the article, and write it in such a way, and then it was so late, and I was making mistakes, you know, because I was trying to squeeze it in, to get the information out there on Facebook.
[Kathy Kreatz]: to share with the community, this is what our schools are doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it's actually, I mean, I really enjoy it because, you know, while we're at work and while we're going about our business, even on the weekend, you know, she's still working or getting those posts out there that can be shared with everybody.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I mean, I just really like it, you know, and I tell her all the time, and Allison,
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just really like hearing what's going on and reading about the students and everything that's going on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just kind of makes my weekend, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I just wanted to share it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's my it's my first, you know, meeting being on the school committee listening to the budget.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I sat in last year.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'm just really confused why why it wasn't agreed by my two colleagues.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess I'd like to hear more on why they disagree with the budget, because I I mean, I felt the revisions were everything that was asked for.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, I'm confused why, I guess I'm just confused why it wasn't approved now, you know, because that's what we agreed on and then the add-ins were added.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I guess I would like to know a little bit more as to why there's a, they're not approving it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I guess that's my question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you, Pat, for your report.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I always enjoy them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I like reading them because they're easy to read instead of the numbers.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just have a question, because I know you're working with Transfinder, and I wanted to just check in with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There was an open issue with a person that called last year, and he's called again this year, and he wanted to have his bus stop moved from Waddell and Park.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'm wondering if there's any way to check in with the Transfinder and see if there's another route that might be possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: even a little ways down the street, there was another corner that I had met with this resident once before, but on Park Ave, the next street over, that was almost a better location, and it's still gonna come up the same route, it's gonna come up Highland, the kids aren't gonna get out on the Highland Ave, and the bus would take the right onto Park Ave,
[Kathy Kreatz]: and just go right by Waddell to the very next corner, which is almost like the size of the bus.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the bus could stop nicely right there, and then cars couldn't get around.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's ideal with the four-corner stop, but what the resident told me was that what he saw was cars were going around the bus, even when the lights were on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he said it was more of a safety issue, because even though the lights would be on, the cars would just, you know,
[Kathy Kreatz]: going around it, you know, even though it's against the law.
[Kathy Kreatz]: they were, you know, and so, you know, that was just an idea.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know what I mean?
[Kathy Kreatz]: If we had to just move it just a nudge over to the next street, which is really just like 50 feet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, great.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I also just want to thank David and Ian, and I wanted to share an experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I went to Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Lasky's class and I got to see the, by hydroponics, yep, the hydroponics, and I got to taste the lettuce.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They cut it and the students brought in the dressing and
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a great experience.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I've also seen the aquaponics at the high school, Mr. Russo's class.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just a wonderful experience for the kids.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was just so fun.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the kids were so happy.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you so much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krutz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, hi, Angela.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you for coming out tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And, um, I, I did respond to your email and I let you know that, you know, I'm new.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a couple of other new people here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And that night, typically we get an agenda and it tells us what's going to be on the agenda that night.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we get the information that we can read through.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So the night that you were here, you weren't on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really haven't experienced a lot of people coming that aren't on the agenda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I didn't have any information to even speak on.
[Kathy Kreatz]: the evaluation of the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know from my work experience where I work, I work at Mass Teachers Retirement System, and I work with over 40 school districts, and I hear from my payroll people all the time how upsetting it is when they see a superintendent go, because they get a superintendent when somebody retires, and the superintendents are coming and going all the time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And when they come and go, they also come in and they reorganize.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and they get their staff in there or their administration in there, and they set new rules.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So then it sends a lot of teachers off going and a lot of people moving out of the community.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I agree with my colleagues that we need to take a lot of time doing the search, because we don't want to get somebody from Chicago, which I've just heard from one of my school districts, because they lost their superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They got a new superintendent for two years after training the new superintendent, and now they have somebody from Chicago coming.
[Kathy Kreatz]: who doesn't know anything about their district.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think that it's going to take time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't know how much time, but we do have coming up the 23rd, I thought it was, is the evening with the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That's for the public, where everybody can go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we're invited to go as well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm going to take notes, because what I heard was that we could take notes at the meeting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And all of the meetings in all the past have been public meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So all the minutes are available.
[Kathy Kreatz]: which is transparent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Honestly, I didn't have time to go and look for all those meeting minutes, but it's all available at any time for anybody to get.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just a matter of, I know where I work.
[Kathy Kreatz]: We have to go into the archive bulletins.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might be something like that because we have so much data to go into the websites.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It might be in a different area that we might have to reach somebody in the IT or the technical office to find out exactly where they are.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Honestly, I don't know, but no, I think
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, it's definitely something we have to consider and take a lot of time to do the search to actually get another superstar like Roy, because he's been doing a terrific job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, students rave about what he's doing, parents rave about what he's doing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, we have a lot of good, positive feedback, and I do appreciate everything you've said, and I hope you got my email when I responded.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I did, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just went to a training along with a couple of my colleagues, and we went to the training.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's for new school committee members.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I received the certification probably, I think, two weeks ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I don't remember the exact date.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, it was actually the day before Mother's Day.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So it was not this week, it was the week before.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and we got a booklet and we, you know, there's a lot of information that we have available, including help from the MASC to conduct a superintendent search.
[Kathy Kreatz]: They assist with the superintendent search and they gave us a little, you know, a little handout.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So they also can help us conduct the search.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And with any questions that we have as a committee, you know, to help us with the search.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Now I'm not experienced with this.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I've never done it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know if any of the colleagues here have done it because Mr. Belson has been the superintendent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I think it's going to be new for all of us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, at the same time, it's going to be a work in process where
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, I think we're all going to learn from this experience and like we've been doing with all the other procedures, we've been documenting and we've been writing instructions and new procedures and we've been reviewing the procedures as a group before we make a motion to put it on the table before we publish it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we've been, you know, doing that, you know, as we, I mean, during committee of the whole meetings.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, so I think it's,
[Kathy Kreatz]: It is, you know, definitely in the works.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I think, you know, where it's so close to the superintendent night and so close to his evaluation, I, you know, I wish the timing was different and we had some more answers for you tonight, but I'm very glad that you've come out, you know, to talk to us.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thanks.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that what you agreed to?
[Kathy Kreatz]: These are just like some minor updates on page two.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's just missing a word, like right here under the bullet one, two, three.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Third bullet down, renters must, it's just missing the word E, 21.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And then down below, a little bit further, I thought it was going to be new individuals will be admitted to the school building before or after an adult supervisor who must be at least 21 years of age.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was gonna be 21 years of age, but it says 18 years in one section, but 21 in another.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I think it just needs to be changed on the bullet on the bullet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Two of the bullets.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Second one from the bottom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say congratulations, Heidi, on qualifying to the next level.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know what a big deal it is.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to know, because I know that the enrollment's going to go up a little bit in the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: There's a few more students joining the vocational school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you think that one guidance Councilor would be enough, or there might be a need for an add to staff, or maybe 1.5?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I was just noticing that the numbers were like the Anderson Middle School was two, McGlynn was two, the vocational school was one, and the high school was five.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I was just kind of looking at the numbers that way.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just had one more question.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, Oh, I just wanted to know, um, who is, what is the name of the new community partnership Councilor?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Okay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I knew I met him, but I just couldn't remember his name.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just wanted to say I enjoyed all the bands, concerts, everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's always just perfect, beautiful, amazing job.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you both.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Crutt.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to say congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it's just, it's amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I know you waited a long time to finally, you know, publish and your dream come true.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And thank you, Mr. Sloan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm really excited to read this and I'm really happy for the Brooks School that they're going to pilot the book.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Congratulations.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you very much.
[Kathy Kreatz]: The message we got today from the Roberts and that was an example of a job well done with the nurse that administered the EpiPen and the way the 911 response and the principal going in the ambulance.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was just wonderful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was a very smooth event.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Extremely smooth.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was handled very well.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kurtz.
[Kathy Kreatz]: What about a backup generator in case of a power outage?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Would they be required to have that?
[Kathy Kreatz]: We are, if possible, you are getting the supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I reached out to a couple of artists, my niece is an artist, and I spoke with somebody that also, I believe, works with the Art Council, and she mentioned there's a company, Blick, and they have high-quality art supplies, very high quality, used by a lot of artists, and they also have
[Kathy Kreatz]: like what's called an art room aid where you can select items and almost like a wish list where you can select the items that you want to choose for the supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I don't know if this would be a recommendation, but it was mentioned that when you do this art room aid,
[Kathy Kreatz]: You can actually request donations with this company.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I think, and I'm not sure, but I think the Andrews Middle School, they did something like that.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I'm not really too sure what it was when they were doing their, you know, the most recent art mural.
[Kathy Kreatz]: But I didn't really have time to reach out to them.
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, the Anderson Middle School without having this any sooner, you know what I mean, than just receiving it over the weekend.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wasn't sure if that was something that you were thinking about or, you know, I wasn't sure.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Do you know if the Andrews Middle School has any supplies left over from their art mural, even if it was paintbrushes that could be shared between the schools?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm not sure if that's something that's possible, but I was thinking of recycling some of the supplies.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I just wanted to say that I did speak with a couple of parents, including my son.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And some of his friends said that the message was very calm, and that all the students were very calm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was a very well-recorded message.
[Kathy Kreatz]: A lot of people were really impressed with the very calmness in your tone.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was a really good message.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And the students were very, I guess because of the training,
[Kathy Kreatz]: They weren't nervous, because I had asked my son, were kids nervous?
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he said, no.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everybody was very calm.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Everything was very, you know, they were notified.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I just wanted to share that I received some positive feedback on the message.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Sam, I want to thank you for coming out tonight.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm really excited about the library card plan.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And we talked about it a couple of weeks ago.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I just love the idea of promoting the literacy and the community participation at the library.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And there was some ideas that we talked about possibly for having maybe, and I don't know if something like this would be possible to have,
[Kathy Kreatz]: maybe like an orientation night at the McGlynn School where Sam could go there and do a presentation for the middle schools one night or for the elementary schools so that the parents could take their children and maybe possibly watch the orientation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: or have something at the high school, at the Karen Theater, after hours, something in the evening for parents and students to go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Even if they didn't get their application at registration time, they could get one at that time, pick it up.
[Kathy Kreatz]: but I definitely think it should be part of the new, um, or this year's orientation folder.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if possible, I agree with Bob scary that we should try to implement it as soon as possible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And you know, once again, thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm just really excited.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I wanted to mention that I talked to my aunt.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's a flight attendant and she travels to Italy a lot.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She said that this is an amazing trip and that it's something that if I could go, I should go.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I wanted to say that I would love to go if you need a school committee member.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And she said for the students, and I agree that it's a trip of a lifetime for them before they go on their educational journey.
[Kathy Kreatz]: or career journey after high school.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know it's expensive, but it is a trip of a lifetime.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She said that the rates were actually reasonable with where they're going in the 10 days.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Considering that it covers everything.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's a lot, but that's what you would pay.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, I was just kind of on what Paulette was saying, where it is approaching the prom season.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is there any special meeting that they have with the juniors and seniors to prepare them for the prom and to talk to them about being safe and not drinking?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just to kind of drill it in.
[Kathy Kreatz]: their heads, that it's very dangerous, and what are the consequences if they're caught at the prom.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I know that when my niece went a couple years ago, there was an all-night after party at Tufts University that was excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Is that still planned for this prom season?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Oh, excellent.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Krentz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I have a point of information that I know at the vocational school, they have some of the power dryers now in some of the bathrooms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So that might be a nice thing, a nice change for the future, instead of the because they were having problems with paper towels.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yeah.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I'd like to put a motion.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to table the agenda item and move it to the committee of the whole meeting on Wednesday so that we can all be there to answer questions.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Aye.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Well, I would like to table it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I can have more time.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That would be a yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Because I haven't been informed.
[Kathy Kreatz]: That would be a yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I'm sorry.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mestone, how are the parents identified?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I actually went online to, there was a video that you could watch online and it was really, it was a great video and it showed, you know, one of the representatives going into a home and teaching the parent how to read to their student.
[Kathy Kreatz]: and going back again and putting a puzzle together.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And it was really sweet.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'm really proud that Nedra is part of this program.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And if there's any way that, because I know they're very low-income families, with their incomes are so low, like $20,000, some are $10,000.
[Kathy Kreatz]: If there's any way that we could donate
[Kathy Kreatz]: you know, jackets or hats or clothing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, I'd be interested in that, you know, just from things that I have left over from my son and even some toys, you know, because, you know, it was, you know, I was really surprised at how low the incomes were, you know.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So if you could let us know, you know, even like adult clothing, you know, for the parents.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yeah, I got a call, Erin, before I left the house, and my parents- Point of information, Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, point of information.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I just want to say, Mr. Trotted, this is terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I love all the little programs that are mentioned here.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I love it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Just wanted to tell you that it's, I just loved it all.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Mr. Feldman, he was terrific.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I really feel for his loss.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he's been around the United States.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And he wears wristbands on both sides of all the families and their favorite colors of the wristband from all the children that have lost and that he's met and encountered.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It really was heartbreaking.
[Kathy Kreatz]: You know, he's so brave.
[Kathy Kreatz]: He can go around the country and share his story and try to help others.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It's incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And Emily, who's from Medford, was there.
[Kathy Kreatz]: She's terrific also, and her little daughter.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really incredible.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It brought tears to my eyes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I realized that I drive distracted just with the navigation system and changing the channel or driving with the coffee.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It just really set in and it makes you think that you don't realize what distractions are until it was brought to our attention.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I thought it was only texting until I went to the presentation.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was really powerful.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Ms.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Kreatz?
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes, I wanted to say I was really, I enjoyed reading it, and I especially liked the year-long implementation of the community animal habitats, construction in our
[Kathy Kreatz]: It was amazing.
[Kathy Kreatz]: It sounds very exciting.
[Kathy Kreatz]: And I'd be interested in observing one of the classes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: So I'll definitely get in touch with you.
[Kathy Kreatz]: I really like it.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Yes.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Um, I just wanted to say, um, in regards to like the halftime position, Heidi, did you ever, um, cause I think if you can send in a critical waiver, like a shortage with the DSE, um, if you can't find anybody to fill like a certified position, you might be able to,
[Kathy Kreatz]: get a critical shortage waiver if he was going to go to full-time status without the license?
[Kathy Kreatz]: I'd like to say thank you also and congratulations to Katie, Adriana, and Lolanda.
[Kathy Kreatz]: Thank you.