SLT Minutes 10/7/08

School Leadership Team
Meeting Minutes
Date: October 7, 2008

I. Call to Order:

Ira Yankwitt called the meeting to order at 7:35 a.m.

II. Attendance:

The following SLT members attended (list in alphabetical order):

Mary Beth Carroll Teacher
Felicia Eve PTA President
Julia Hurn Parent
Carey Johnson Parent
Edy Ledee Family Worker
Marcia Lerner Parent
James Lola Parent
Arthur Mattia Principal
Amy Mercurio Teacher
Steve Quester UFT Chapter leader
Linda Reardon Parent
Cathy Sarno Assistant Principal
Joe Sultana Teacher
Ira Yankwitt Parent

Other attendee:

Valerie Price Ervin Parent & CEC Member


III. Subcommittee Reports/Updates:

1. Principal's Update (Artie Mattia)

a. Middle School Letter
• An application for middle school reconfiguration (pk–8) has been submitted.
• On October 14 we will be notified whether our application has been accepted.
• The PTA is drafting a parental letter of support. Felicia Eve, PTA President, reported a draft has been made.

b. Lottery Applicants from Spring 2008
• Pre-K:
96 applicants total; 91 from NE; 5 from SW.
Only two non-sibling spots were offered. All 5 SW applicants declined.
• Kindergarten:
112 applicants total; 96 from NE; 16 from SW.
8 SW applicants declined spots.
• Steve Quester asked if the ethnicity of declining familes could be determined. Artie Mattia said we were not allowed to ask ethnicity on the lottery applications so that information could not be ascertained.

c. Reading Information Night
• Held Thursday, October 2. The attendees said they got a lot of good information from it, but only 20 families were represented, many fewer than said they were interested in attending. Possibly the timing of the event was an issue: first night after a holiday and the night of the Vice Presidential debates.

d. CEP
• A new template has been issued.
• No official timeline has been set, but Mr. Artie thinks it is likely to be due in November.
• Because of this tight timeline, the SLT should begin work on the new CEP ASAP.

2. UFT Update (Steve Quester)

a. Teacher "Report Cards"
• The DoE has issued reports cards for teachers, based solely on improvement in reading and math test scores. Teachers receive one of three possible grades: Above Average, Average, and Below Average.
• These report cards will not be issued publicly but will remain internal, HR documents that cannot be used to formally evaluate teacher performance, per the UFT contract.
• Only 4th and 5th grade teachers at the Childrens School will receive these report cards.
• It's not clear if District 75 teachers will also receive report cards or only District 15 teachers will.

b. Petition on School Cuts/Savings
• Randi Weingarten, President of UFT and AFT, has written a letter to Chancellor Klein regarding these cuts. It can be read at UFT.org. She targets the Absent Teacher Reserve as an area where money can be saved.
• Time Out From Testing and other student advocacy groups have also drafted a petition to the BoE advocating savings by eliminating high stakes testing and tracking. This petition can be read and signed at www.timeoutfromtesting.org.
• Mr. Artie reported that the estimated cuts for this year are 2.5%. The estimated cuts for next year are 5%. Last year's mid-year cut was restored.

c. UFT Partnership Award being given to Childrens School
• The UFT is giving a Partnership Award to the Childrens School to honor the especially cooperative relationship between our administration and UFT chapter. The award will be presented to Mr. Artie, Ms. Cathy, and other administrators at a special dinner at the Waldorf Astoria.

3. PTA/CPAC Update (Felicia Eve)

a. Inclusion Video
• A couple Childrens School parents with backgrounds in video production have proposed that they create a five-minute video about inclusion at the Childrens School. It would focus on one class and feature interviews with teachers and service providers. This video could be used as an outreach and recruitment tool. At the next meeting, the parents will present their proposal.

b. Haitian Relief Efforts
• Roxanna Velandria sent an email to the Childrens School community. Valerie Price-Ervin noted that as a result several Childrens School families attended her church's fund raiser. $2,500 was raised.

c. CPAC Representation
• Felicia noted that while she is no longer the CPAC representative, someone on the PTA will attend meetings. Felicia will continue to make reports to the SLT.

4. Community Education Council (CEC) (Valerie Price-Ervin)

a. Teacher "Report Cards"
• A Share Fair will be held October 18 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 at PS 10, 511 Seventh Avenue.
• The Middle School Forum will be held November 20, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., place TBA but possibly MS 51. It may include charter schools for the first time. The date conflicts with parent/teacher conference day.
• The Childrens School is hosting the CECSE (Special Education) October 15. There will be an overview on related services. Roxanna Velandria will notify the community.

5. Setting Priorities:
Should the SLT Establish additional SubCommittees? (Ira Yankwitt)

a. SubCommittees
• A discussion was had about the possibility of establishing subcommittees to effectively and efficiently address our twelve-item task list. It was suggested that such committees be ad-hoc, lead by SLT members but be open to the larger parent community, and be specifically charged by the SLT.
• A motion was made to establish a subcommittee structure. It was seconded and unanimously voted in.
• The actual subcommittee structure will be our top agenda item at the next meeting.

IV. Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting:

a. Agenda Items for Next Meeting
• Creation and structure of subcommittees
• Plan to complete CEP
• Inclusion Video presentation
b. Agenda Structure
• A suggestion was made to invert the agenda so that most of the meeting time could be devoted to discussing pressing issues.

V. Adjournment:
Ira Yankwitt adjourned the meeting at 8:20 a.m.

Minutes submitted by Carey Johnson