Jamestown Schools: A School-Community Partnership
"SCAN," issued by the Superintendent’s Office in conjunction with the School Committee, is designed to inform staff members and interested others of matters discussed and actions taken by the Jamestown School Committee at its most recent meeting. SCAN does not represent meeting minutes.
Ms. Kaiser opened the meeting by explaining the process of “pink-slipping.” Under Rhode Island general laws, school committees must provide notification by March 1 to any teacher whose job may be impacted for the following school year. Ms. Kaiser explained that the March 1 date presents difficulties due to critical factors that are “unknown” at that time. As of March 1, school committees do not yet know what state aid totals will be for the following year; they do not know whether their budgets will be approved in full by their towns; and they do not know the impact of “bumping” – the process by which a teacher whose position is eliminated may displace a less senior teacher, causing the number of teachers receiving pink slips to be artificially high. Ms. Kaiser noted that she has testified for several years running in support of a bill that would change the notification date from March to June, and that the state’s union leadership always testifies against the bill, asserting that teachers need the additional time to look for new positions. Ms. Kaiser explained that at its first budget workshop the school committee directed the administration to identify and prioritize reductions to respond to any potential loss of state aid (up to and including 100% loss). The number of teachers receiving pink-slips is the result of having to plan for these various loss scenarios. Ms. Kaiser noted that the administrative tier has made clear its reluctance to make any of the cuts identified, as these cuts are not in the best interest of students. She also stressed that the situation is “fluid” and that the majority of pink slips could be rescinded as information about FY10 state aid becomes available.
Public Forum: Parents and interested community members spoke in support of the art, music, foreign language and physical education programs – areas in which teachers had received pink slips.
Pre-Deprivation Hearing: The school committee voted 4-0 to approve the superintendent’s recommendation for the non-renewal and/or termination and/or reduction of the teaching contracts of the following personnel for the 2009-2010 school year: William Catone, Jennifer Caswell, Andrea Brayman, Kristen Bennett, Stephanie Pamula, Janet Kraus, Michaela Onosko, Polly Beth Yoder Alfonso, Wendy Mainella, Colleen MacIntyre, Tara Higgins, Denise Fiorio, Jennifer Kittridge Clark, Dawn Huff, Jeana Calise, Gilda Codilla, Lori Rush and Tara Toolan.
Continued Discussion of the FY10 Budget: The administration announced reductions in the FY10 proposed budget due to the receipt of updated estimates for health insurance and worker’s compensation. The revised budget calls for a town contribution of $11,415,499 – a 2.26% increase over the FY2009 budget (down from the 2.50% increase previously projected). The administration also noted the revision of the capital plan figures to include technology expenditures. The proposed technology budget would add $154,147 to the capital budget, to be paid for by a transfer from the unreserved fund. This additional transfer would reduce the fund balance to $428,211. In response to audience questions, Ms. Kaiser explained that the school committee pays capital expenses by transferring monies from the unreserved fund, but that the committee will not use unreserved funds to underwrite operating expenses as it considers this strategy fiscally imprudent (a budgetary “band-aid”). Committee members expressed strong reservations about bringing the unreserved fund below 5%-of-the-budget threshold and recommended instead that the technology committee spread the proposed technology expenditures over 2-3 years, minimizing the immediate impact on the unreserved fund. The committee will look at the revised technology plan at the Feb. 26 business meeting and will vote on the budget at that time.
Early Release for Emergency Procedures Training: The committee approved the superintendent’s recommendation that students be released at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 9 to allow all staff to participate in emergency procedures training.
Negotiating Sub-committees – JESPA and JTA: Ms. Kaiser and Ms. Held volunteered to serve as a sub-committee for the upcoming JESPA negotiations; Ms. Kaiser and Ms. Kallfelz volunteered to serve as a sub-committee for JTA negotiations in the event that the school committee finds it necessary to ask JTA to re-open the contract prior to its June 2010 expiration. Mr. Whitehouse registered his concern that forming a JTA sub-committee was premature and would cause undue anxiety among teachers. Ms. Kaiser argued that having a sub-committee in place is a reasonable precaution in light of the worsening economy.
The next business meeting of the Jamestown School Committee will be on February 26. The next workshop meeting will be on March 12. All school committee meetings are held at 7 p.m. in the Lawn School Library. The budget hearing with the Town Council will be on March 3 at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.