Minutes of the LHS School Council Meeting
24 Sept 2007, 7:00 PM
LEXINGTON HIGH SCHOOL
School Council Meeting Notes
High School Guidance Conference room

The first meeting of the LHS School Council was held in the Guidance Conference Room at 7 p.m. on Monday, September 24, 2007. Present were: Dick Brown, Sharyn Walczewski, 3 student reps, Ellen Hilsinger, Diane Garmon, Mike Jones, David Colarusso, Jeri Zeder, Marshall Dury, Pat Bonnet, Adam Seitchik and Jean Cole.

Diane Garmon was re-elected to co-chair the Council with Principal Mike Jones.
Meetings for the year were scheduled: October 22, November 26, December 10, January 14,
February 25, March 24, April 28, and May 19.

Orientation:
There was a brief orientation about the history and requirements of School Councils. The number of parents should equal the number of teachers + principal; each group elects its own representatives, and the principal appoints the community member. The School Council is advisory to the principal; however, Mike Jones believes its opinion carries great weight. It considers the needs of the students, reviews the budget, reviews any changes in the Program of Studies, and approves the Student/Parent Handbook. School Council is mandated to develop a School Improvement Plan every year. All meetings are open to the public. Anyone may request an item for the agenda and should call either Mike Jones or Diane Garmon ahead of time for the most effective, efficient running of meetings.

School Improvement Plan:
Mike Jones informed the Council of several changes that were made in the School Improvement Plan at the behest of Superintendent Paul Ash. The revised version is attached. It will be presented to the School Committee along with all other schools’ plans at their meeting on October 3. There are several important committees which will be working this year. The first, made up of faculty, students and parents, will be working on a policy regarding the posting of syllabi and homework on the web. It will be chaired by math teacher John Shea who is completing an administrative internship with Mike Jones.

The second committee will be making a review of the technology at LHS: the current system, equipment and software, and the needs going forward.

Another committee will address any achievement gap between subgroups in the student population. It will be chaired by Dean Nancy DeFeudis. Retiring LEA president Vito LaMura is researching best practices on the subject, and new METCO counselor Joél Villegas is interested in data analysis.

There are several faculty committees working towards a report for the NEASC (New England Association of School and Colleges) accreditation review. There will be a visiting committee on May 4-7, and Mike hopes the Council members will attend the Sunday reception (May 4).

There was a brief discussion about adding extracurricular activities to next year’s school improvement plan.
In answer to a question concerning assessing student well-being, Mike said that is covered in the last SIP goal as well as in the social and civic expections of the mission statement. Nancy DeFeudis’ committee is already collecting data on health (e.g., mental health referrals) and disciplinary actions. A report is expected this fall so that we can set targets.

Opening of school:
The opening of school went “surprisingly well” given the early start and the number of new hires (40) that were made. Laura Lasa is the new Associate Principal; Charles Caliri is the new Dean. We have acting department heads in English, Physical Education & Wellness, Science and Special Education. There are 207 people on the faculty/prof. staff. Morale is very good, especially because of the override.
Transportation issues, which have been very problematic in town, have not been so bad at the High School.

The facility is not in good condition. The Science building has been repaired with a new ventilating unit, but it has not yet been cleared for fume-producing labs. The sewage leakage problem in the Fitness Center has been corrected. There is roof work that needs to be done. The auditorium HVAC system is too noisy to use. The new lighting board has a very loud hum which adds to the noise problem. The Field House floor (as opposed to the track) has lost its resiliency and needs repair/replacement.

Next month, one item on the agenda will be extracurricular activities and the problem of limited sign ups for sports. (700 students signed up for sports, but we only have places for 500).

The meeting adjourned at 8:25.
Respectfully submitted,
Jean Cole