December 18, 2006, Board Meeting

December 18, 2006 Regular Special Meeting
5:00 PM Midtown Center Meeting Room

MINUTES

At 5:00 p.m. Chair Vern Newby called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Trustees Edie Brooks, Christie Wood, Sid Fredrickson and Diane Zipperer were present.

Approval of Minutes: Motion by Mrs. Wood, second by Mrs. Brooks to approve the minutes of December 4, 2006, passed 4-0-1 (Mr. Fredrickson abstained). Motion by Mrs. Brooks, second by Mrs. Zipperer to approve the minutes of December 7, 2006, passed 4-0-1 (Mr. Fredrickson abstained).

Approval of the Agenda and Possible Addendum: Motion by Mr. Fredrickson, second by Mrs. Brooks to approve the agenda with the addition of Project CDA presentation, passed 5-0.

Students representing Project CDA addressed the Board about working with Valerie Martin in the Food Service Department. Students have scheduled a speaker to come to Project on March 20 at 8:30 to present a program called “Unstoppable You”. They plan to invite students from other alternative schools as well. Students participated in a food drive where they collected 200 pounds of food; they received certificates from the University of Idaho for their participation. Thanksgiving dinner was served at Project, prepared by staff. Students are writing cards to soldiers, and Santa will visit the child care center. Basketball season will begin soon.

Identification of Citizens Wishing to Address the Board - None
Approval of Consent Agenda Items: None
Consideration of Action/Information Items:

Chair Newby set the process for tonight’s meeting: questions will be received based on information provided tonight by the administration. The floor will be opened to questions, information will be processed and additional input will be gathered at the January 2 Board meeting.

Analysis of Sorensen Elementary: Superintendent Amend thanked everyone for their attendance and appreciates input received thus far. Tonight’s presentation is the district’s attempt to respond to questions and concerns brought forth since November 20. Questions will be taken from now until January 2. The goal is to provide as much information as possible to the Board in order to make the best decision about Sorensen; a decision may be made in February. Why is the district considering closing a school? The budget presents some challenges and many cuts were made last year. Some of those cuts were highlighted by Superintendent Amend.

Questions from Board members:
Mrs. Wood asked about Borah portables and their use. Regarding Fernan preschool moving to Ramsey: are classrooms available in light of rezoning and remodeling? She would like to ask Long Range Planning Committee about economic development issues outside of our issues. The city has taken a stand to keep open and she asked to see the data they used for their rationale.
Mr. Fredrickson suggested contacting the Chamber of Commerce Education Committee and ask for their input.
Mrs. Brooks requested information about all portables and their current use.
Chair Newby asked about the costs to move furniture, books, and to forecast the needs for additional space; what would be the costs to move portables to north.
Mrs. Zipperer asked about the need for additional positions i.e. custodians, parapros.
Mrs. Brooks requested current class sizes and projected classroom numbers after students would be moved from Sorensen.
Mr. Fredrickson expressed some concerns about transportation (bussing) costs and will the district have to transport students who are already in a walk zone. Will the district be reimbursed at 100% or 85% from the state?

Questions from Audience:
Chris Guggemos, 822 Wallace, Coeur d’Alene said it seems like there’s a determination by the Board to justify closing Sorensen. He asked if individual Board members have made up their mind whether they are voting to close. Mr. Newby responded that a decision must be made in open session and there has been no pre-determination. Mr. Guggemos asked if members have had any thoughts individually about what to do with Sorensen? Mrs. Wood responded no.
Doug Fagerness, no comment.
Steve James, 905 Boyd Ave. Coeur d’Alene representing Sorensen PTA asked how to get better information about demographics. How to build a relationship with the city to help get economics information. Mr. Amend responded that we will get input from the city. Mr. James asked how the Sorensen PTA can help the district get better information so the best decision will ultimately be made.
Sharalee Howard, 716 A St. Coeur d’Alene shared information/feedback from her comments at the last Board meeting.
Teresa Runge, 905 Boyd Ave. Coeur d’Alene asked if it is a good educational practice to transfer students from building facilities to portables. Enrollment is increasing, and should the district keep portables open for unexpected growth? Has a long range plan been considered, what will happen if there’s growth in the south? Will this lead to increased involuntary bussing, or art on a cart? Why use 8 classrooms at Ramsey when growth is so fast in northern schools?
Doug Evans, 717 B St. Coeur d’Alene spoke about short term and long term costs. Won’t Sorensen help the district by providing the opportunity for a magnet school? parents would provide transportation from north? Looking at the short term savings of $300,000 – $411,000, isn’t that a small amount based on district budget as a whole? Are we creating an overcrowding situation by closing a school? Are we looking at projections and possibly looking at building a new school? Is the Board aware that the Sorensen zone has been the strongest supporters of school levies?
Colleen Krajack, 607 S 14th, Coeur d’Alene asked if the Board has considered the value of some of the soft costs i.e., sense of community, and integrity; these things are very important to the community. Has there been any consideration of the economic damage from closing a school and then asking the community to build a new one? Do portables suggest a stable and valued environment? Is there any economic value to offering a magnet school where money could be generated? Is there an impact to the Board and school district when community/city partnerships are shunned? Would we be better off directing passion into passing future levies instead of saving successful school? What better things can money be spent on to then have full parental and community support?
James Collett, 823 Wallace Ave. Coeur d’Alene shared a response he received about a request for public documents. He asked if there is a plan for Sorensen in case of a closure. Are Long Range Planning Meetings on the Internet and should this have been provided by the District? He believes the District violated the statute. He provided some notes from a Long Range Planning Committee about property speculation. Does the administration feel the need to be cautious with taxpayers money? Would it make sense to add portables at the Hayden Lake site, and how much does it cost to relocate a portable? How does the District measure disruption (pg 11), vs. how to measure rezoning and moving the district office? 52% of Sorensen is district office; what percent of other schools are taken up by district offices? It’s unfair that the district office takes up more space than the school itself. Are socio economic factors contributors of Sorensen scores? How are lower test scores affected? Is it fair to compare Sorensen to other schools that don’t have the same factors? Has the Long Range Planning Committee had this discussion and isn’t it better to provide documents when requested? Superintendent Amend will follow up with Mr. Collett.
Williene Gagnon - no comment
Jennifer Beery, 1015 N 3rd Coeur d’Alene asked if the District knows how they will direct schools upon changes in zoning. Will student be considered outsiders coming in and be first to be transferred out in case of full classrooms at a different school? Will students who have been at the school longer get preferential treatment?
Kris Hanigan Luther, no address given: asked where is the comparative study of the financial justification listed in Superintendent Amend’s presentation? If not available, why not? How could a greater student load not result in an increase of custodial, office, food service, aides, etc. costs? Has the Board familiarized themselves with the housing needs assessment being done for Coeur d’Alene? This shows how the city is taking steps to create affordable housing.
Roger Snyder, 319 Park Dr. Coeur d’Alene asked if it will be known ahead of time of changes in the meeting format. Has the school board always had public comment during a board meeting? Why is there no mention of the research findings on the cost of consolidation, economy of scale in any of the prepared documents used tonight? Does the District think the research regarding consolidation is relevant to this conversation? The variable of socio-economic status as measured by free and reduced lunch rates does not appear to be a critical factor (pg 13). Does this meet with the research and how do we square that? What are the implications, changes in philosophy and direction? Superintendent Amend responded that the performances of students are random in terms of a school’s percentage of free and reduced lunch. Mr. Snyder asked why we only go back for 4 years of test results but growth is looked at over 10 years? Can we look at test scores prior to 4 years ago? Superintendent Amend responded that the statewide standardized test, the ISAT, was first given 4 years ago. Mr. Snyder asked why decisions based on research used to have emphasis and now it seems we have thrown that practice out the window?
John Bruning, 618 Military Drive, Coeur d’Alene represents the city planning & zoning and offered information about the future of the downtown area. Superintendent Amend will contact him.
Kathy Gephart, 924 Young Ave. Coeur d’Alene asked how does the district know how many students are incoming next year especially kindergarten. Superintendent Amend responded that the district does a 5 year birth study in conjunction with Kootenai Medical Center. A system called Child Find is used to track growth. Ms. Gephart asked if the district would take a poll of how many students wish to attend Sorensen next year.
Amy Evans, 717 B St. Coeur d’Alene - Co chair of the Sorensen PTA asked if the next board meeting could be held at a different location. If the agenda is changed, would the Board notify people ahead of time? She asked if the Board was aware that 25 students were transferred involuntarily out of Sorensen.
Kyle Knapp, 1001 Wallace Ave, Coeur d’Alene asked if any contingency plans are in place, in light of Gozzer Ranch, Iceplant and new family residences. Have new family developments been considered? Have other avenues been pursued besides closing Sorensen? Superintendent Amend explained that the district is working on potential future cuts without hurting students in the classroom. It takes a combination of asking the right amount for a levy and being lean. This will impact all schools. Mr. Knapp asked why no costs associated with increased maintenance at receiving schools for Sorensen students has been included in the information packet? Superintendent Amend stated that most of the resources go where students go and we will break down moving costs for January 2nd meeting. Mr. Knapp replied that no costs were noted on the economic statement provided by administration, i.e. increased costs of water, paper, pencils, etc.
Dave Miller, Post Falls asked about the numbers of transfers that were denied from outside the district? Information in the packet (from pages 1&3) talk about attendance numbers, however the numbers appear to add differently and are difficult to interpret. Is the average voter likely to vote to build a new school in the North if a school has been closed in the very recent past? If a change in the use of Sorensen is to be determined, we will have to fix problems to meet current zoning? Is Sorensen most valuable as a school? If the bulk of savings comes from staff, will we take a major hit on student to staff ratio?
Jack Riggs, 801 S. 11th, Coeur d’Alene spoke about the recent change in property taxes and asked if it’s likely that voters will support an increase in an SPFL? Does it seem, when looking at the history of downtown, short sided to be making this decision right now?
Jennifer Riggs, 801 S 11th St. Coeur d’Alene asked if the Board and Long Range Planning Committee have taken into account the new shift in state government. A change is inevitable. Money allocations and appropriation are going to change, right now may not be a good time to make this type of decision. Mrs. Wood asked if Jennifer could provide the Board with new policies. She also stated the District and Board have been active in developing some of these changes, and that we are proactive.
Pat Pace, 419 S 13th Coeur d’Alene stated if the district is sending 161 students to Fernan, have they taken into account the numbers of kids who will cross 15th Street, and has safety been considered? What are the costs of additional crosswalks and guards? These costs will be included in the moving costs and available at the next Board meeting
Matt Banger, 4845 Ann St., Coeur d’Alene. Have we asked what we can do to keep Sorensen open? Is the Board going to ask the Sorensen community what they are willing to do to keep Sorensen open?
Ann Couser 1403 Ash Ave, Coeur d’Alene. Will the Board consider keeping Sorensen open if enough students are recruited for the Magnet School?

The meeting recessed at 7:35 p.m. and reconvened at 7:45 p.m. Chair Newby thanked all in attendance.

Magnet School: Sorensen Principal David Miller thanked parents for their affirmation and support of Sorensen. Sorensen has been in an evolution for over 2 ½ years; this is not a plea to save the school. This idea was presented to district office administrators last spring and perhaps this year, Sorensen can employ some of these strategies. The staff is poised to move in an exciting direction. The School Board and district office are the important partners. David Miller and teachers Sandy Medved and Christa Seger read a prepared script. After the presentation, David shared a website called “Learning Through The Arts”. Teacher David Groth stated that people care and are invested in their school. “Now is not the time, and it’s not a reasonable conclusion that downtown will not be home to elementary age children again”. A Magnet Arts program will offer choices for families. Can the magnet idea work; if done well, yes. Mr. Fredrickson asked how long it will take to bring a plan to the administration. Could they come up with preliminary plan in a short amount of time? Sorensen will seek to answer questions immediately. Mrs. Brooks said she is always interested in programs that offer opportunities to students. Are some of these ideas more of a “wish list” and where does the financial backing come from? There are also costs to bringing the building up to code; these costs must be addressed in the next few months. How will students meet and exceed district standards? Mr. Miller responded there are costs associated with Magnet program and it needs to be a revenue-neutral proposal. Their vision is to pursue partnerships with the community, both financial and in-kind.

The meeting recessed at 8:20 p.m. and reconvened at 8:25 p.m.

Call for Committee Reports
Mrs. Zipperer stated that the Report Card Committee continues to meet. Mrs. Brooks asked about the progress of the committee meeting about high school schedules. Ms. Bauman stated that a recommendation may be forthcoming soon. Mrs. Brooks would like to participate in this committee’s work prior to a recommendation coming forward. Mrs. Wood asked that the committee working with the District and North Idaho College about higher education meet more formally and she would like to participate. She wishes to continue the dialogue with all institutions in the educational corridor.

Superintendent’s Report: Superintendent Amend explained that he was not able to provide the December 13 Long Range Planning Committee minutes for tonight’s meeting but will have them tomorrow and will e-mail to the Board.

Board Comments and Information: Mrs. Brooks asked about future cuts. Superintendent Amend responded that we are waiting for final input from the levy questionnaire. No decisions have been made at this time. He hopes to have levy weigh in at Jan 16th meeting. It may be the end of February before the Board has enough information to set the amount. There aren’t many areas that we can cut from. The entire admin. council meeting last week was dedicated to getting feedback about levy amount and priorities. Mrs. Brooks asked to be brought along in the conversation. Even if the levy stays the same, the previous cuts will not be reinstated. Chair Newby asked about the Project CDA/Bridge Academy relationship – and comments he heard that Project has been losing students to the Bridge. Are we providing guidelines that set Bridge up as dropout retrieval? Secondary Education Director Rosie Astorquia met today with high school staff representatives about offering a Bridge - high school combination. Teaching and learning must take priority when it comes to making cuts and saving money. Mrs. Brooks asked about the cost to remodel Sorensen and information about how current portables are being used. She also requested to check the District footprint against Sorensen. Mr. Fredrickson asked the administration to check with the city to find out about building permits and at what point does planning and zoning get involved.

Motion by Mrs. Brooks, second by Mrs. Wood for Executive Session: Idaho Code 67-2345, Subsection (f) to consider and advise its legal representatives in pending litigation or where there is a general public awareness of probable litigation. Roll call vote: Newby, Brooks, Fredrickson, Wood and Zipperer each “yes”.

Motion by Mr. Fredrickson, second by Mrs. Wood to accept the offer from Rene Rossman Berry to settle an outstanding judgment brought by the school district, passed 5-0.

Meeting adjourned at 9:38 p.m.

Summary Statement of Executive Session

At 9:30 p.m. in accordance with Idaho Code 67-2345, Subsection (f) to consider and advise its legal representatives in pending litigation or where there is a general public awareness of probable litigation.

Vernon L. Newby, Chair, Board of Trustees

Lynn M. Towne, Clerk, Board of Trustees

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