School Committee

LOWELL SCHOOL COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Date: April 21, 2021 Time: 6:30PM Location: City Council Chamber, 375 Merrimack Street, 2nd Floor, Lowell, MA 01852 (In the Mayor’s discretion, the meeting may be move to a Zoom room, if conditions require such a change). Pursuant To Governor Baker's Emergency Order Modifying The State's Open Meeting Law Issued March 12, 2020, Meetings Will Be Held Using Remote Participation As Follows: Members Of The Public May Not Participate In-Person And May View The Meeting Via LTC.ORG (On-Line; Live Streaming Or Local Cable Channel 99) And Zoom. 1. SALUTE TO FLAG 2. ROLL CALL On a roll call at 6:33 p.m., members present were, namely: Ms. Martin, Ms. Clark, Mr. Descoteaux, Mr. Dillon, Ms. Doherty and Mayor Leahy. One seat is temporarily vacant due to a resignation. 3. SPECIAL ORDER OF BUSINESS 4. MINUTES 4.1. Approval of the Minutes of the Special Meeting Executive Session of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, March 31, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the two (2) Special Meetings of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, March 31, 2021 and the Regularly Scheduled School Committee Meeting of Wednesday, April 7, 2021; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 4.2. Approval of the Minutes of the Special Meeting of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, March 31, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the two (2) Special Meetings of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, March 31, 2021 and the Regularly Scheduled School Committee Meeting of Wednesday, April 7, 2021; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 2 of 9) 4.3. Approval of the Minutes of the Regularly Scheduled School Committee Meeting of Wednesday, April 7, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the two (2) Special Meetings of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, March 31, 2021 and the Regularly Scheduled School Committee Meeting of Wednesday, April 7, 2021; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 5. PERMISSION TO ENTER 5.1. Permission to Enter: April 21, 2021 Ms. Doherty made a motion to approve the Permission to Enter; seconded by Ms. Clark. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 6. MEMORIALS 6.1. Dr. Gertrude Bailey, Retired Lincoln School Principal 7. MOTIONS 7.1. [By Andy Descoteaux]: What is the current status of the Lowell High School Graduation for location and dates? Will the JROTC Cadets, band and/or chorus be participating? Lowell High School graduation is being held on Monday, June 14, 2021 at LeLacheur Park. Mr. Descoteaux made a motion to approve; seconded by Ms. Doherty. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 7.2. [By Andy Descoteaux]: Ask the Superintendent to ask the City Manager where the Lowell High School Project is in the Project time line. Are we on schedule, behind schedule or ahead of schedule? Mr. Dillon requested that the Committee receive regular updates on the Lowell High School project. Mayor Leahy agreed with Mr. Dillon and then requested that the Committee receive a quarterly update on the Lowell High School project. Mr. Descoteaux made a motion to approve; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 7.3. [By Jackie Doherty]: Request the Superintendent provide to the Committee prior to the Finance Subcommittee meeting on the 2021-2022 budget, each school’s Improvement Plan and School Site Council representative process for review and approval as required by law. The School Site Council reports should include the names, roles, and contact information of members, the terms of service, and the meeting dates for the current school year. Ms. Doherty stated that each school’s process information can be on one (1) page and the Improvement Plan can be on one (1) to two (2) pages. Ms. Doherty made a motion to approve; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 3 of 9) 7.4. [By Jackie Doherty]: Request the Superintendent or his designee collaborate with the city’s DPW, Police, and Parks Departments to: 1. Prioritize maintenance/safety of parks near our schools, 2. Collaborate and prioritize getting outdoor place structures for the Rogers Stem Academy, the Cardinal O’Connell Early Learning Center, and the Bartlett Community Partnership schools, and 3. Work together to assess the feasibility/availability of tents for schools to use during the extended summer program. Monica Lundberg and Nicole Bernier both registered and spoke on this motion. Mr. Underwood, Facilities Director informed the Committee that during remote learning due to the pandemic, a tent (16 X 10) was purchased for every school. Ms. Doherty made a motion to approve; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8. REPORTS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT 8.1. Update on In-Person Learning Ms. Desmond, Chief Academic Officer provided an update to the Committee on In-Person Learning. The report and discussion included the following:  Summary of In-Person Expansion Plan for Secondary Schools  Current Remote and In-Person Enrollment Data for Grades K to 5  Projected April 26th Remote and In-Person Enrollment Data for Grades 6 to 12  Professional Development Follow Up  Operations Follow Up – FAQ  Important Upcoming Dates  LPS COVID Dashboard Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.2. Update on Secondary School Redesign Mr. Fiato, Lowell High Head of School provided an update to the Committee on Secondary School Redesign. Mr. Fiato stated that the district is striving to achieve the community-wide vision for our graduates and that this is articulated in the district’s soon-to-be finalized Portrait of a Graduate (PoG). He stated that this is a collaborative approach with many levels of ongoing stakeholder involvement. He stated that the immediate steps for improvement are outlined in the Lowell High School Sustainable Improvement/Turnaround Plan which informed this year’s school-based budgeting process and will set the stage for sustainable improvements in the classroom. He also stated that the long-term instructional redesign work that is currently underway will drive the implantation phase of the PoG beginning in the summer, along with the progress and milestones that have already been achieved Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 4 of 9) today in key programmatic areas. The report and discussion included the following:  Overview  Need for Change  Immediate Steps for Improvement  Long-Term Redesign  Organizational and Administration Alignment  Construction Update  End of Year and Important Dates Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3. Report on Motions Superintendent Boyd provided the Committee with an updated report on the status of outstanding motions and asked the Committee if they had any concerns or questions. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3.1. Response to Motion 2.CEEO of 12/09/20 by Andy Descoteaux Regarding SSC Selection Process Ms. Phillips, Chief Equity and Engagement Officer provided a report to the Committee that informed them that following the 2019 School Site Council Summit, the Office of Equity and Empowerment reviewed school processes where questions were raised regarding the election process for families or teachers. While several of the processes may not have been executed in a perfect way, no schools were found to have administrative interference. The report stated that in one (1) school, per the principal’s request, a parent election process was restarted and resulted in a satisfactory parent election process for the school. The report states that given the impact of the pandemic, most schools elected to maintain their current School Site Council members wherever possible for the 2020-21 school year. It appears that one of the greatest challenges of securing parent representatives on School Site Councils is with recruitment, diversity of parent representatives, and strength of existing parent organizations at schools to support the recruitment and election process. Ms. Doherty stated that we need details heading into the budget deliberations and we need to look at each SSC. Ms. Clark stated that each school has SSC information on their website. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 5 of 9) 8.3.2. Response to Motions 1.CSO of 12/09/20 by Jackie Doherty Regarding Comprehensive Data- Driven Report on Remote Learning. Dr. Guillory, Chief Schools Officer provided a report to the Committee regarding comprehensive data- driven information on remote learning. The report stated that to comply with the beginning of the year re-opening guidance that was provided by the Governor and the Commissioner of Education on the safe return to school, the District prioritized students in the substantially sub-separate programs, CSA, Adjustment, LEAP and language based classrooms. In addition, the Day schools and students with vision, deaf and hard of hearing disabilities made up about 3% of the total enrollment. The District held a lottery over the summer to determine the remaining 25% of seats at each of the schools. The report stated that overall, of the roughly 25% of students that were engaged in in-person learning as of October 16th, class sizes varied, depending on the grade level, type of class, authorized usable space/classrooms within a building, staffing, and guardian choice. It can be noted that most schools focused on bringing back students at the younger grade levels as compared to the students in upper grade levels as reflected in the District’s reopening plan. In accordance with section eight (8) of the reopening MOA between the School Committee and UTL adopted October 7, 2020 by unanimous vote, all class sizes complied with section eight (8) of the MOA. Additionally, students who were enrolled in remote learning were fairly consistent across grade levels and buildings; there were, however, instances where some grade levels had a larger number of students enrolled because of the availability of in- person staff. Ms. Doherty asked why our districts attendance is so high and is so much higher than what the state reports statewide. Dr. Guillory stated that it’s a testament to our staff and their diligence. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3.3. Response to Motion 3.CAO of 12/09/20 by Jackie Doherty Regarding Data on In-Person SPED Program Ms. Desmond, Chief Academic Officer provided a report to the Committee regarding data on In-Person SPED Program. The report stated that the attendance data was disaggregated to look at the in-person substantially separate special education programs and that overall, the attendance for the in-person substantially separate special education programs remains steady at above 85%. The report stated that the safety recommendations are congruent with the district-wide safety protocols that are currently in place and all COVID-19 mitigation strategies continue to be utilized. Schools have a large supply of masks, gowns and gloves. The Special Education Department has supported day schools and sub- separate programs by dispatching Board Certified Behavior Analysis (BCBAs) to support special education teams to ensure mask compliance and to support teams with positive behavior supports. The Special Education Department has continuously met with the transportation department to address students' concerns and non-compliance mask use. Plans have been developed to support both the transportation company and special education teams. Testing sites have been developed to minimize contact and ensure PPE guidelines are followed to provide students and staff with safe testing Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 6 of 9) environments. The Special Education Department will continue to encourage IEP meetings to be held virtually to minimize in-person contact. In each school, the district has supported related service providers in providing tele-therapy as an option to help minimize contact. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3.4. Response to Motion 4.CAO of 02/03/21 by Jackie Doherty Regarding Virtual Listening Session on Remote Learning Ms. Desmond, Chief Academic Officer provided a report to the Committee regarding virtual listening sessions on remote learning. The report included current listening sessions occurring at Lowell High School informing the Committee what is working and what is not working. Committee members will meet with Lowell High School Advisory Council members on Friday, May 14, 2021 at 7:55 a.m. for a virtual listening session. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3.5. Response to Motion 3.CEEO of 12/09/20 by Jackie Doherty Regarding Citywide Council Annual Update Ms. Phillips, Chief Equity and Engagement Officer provided a report to the Committee that informed them that the Office of Equity and Empowerment extended an invitation to the Citywide Family Council to present to the School Committee in the fall, and the response to the request was that the Council anticipates presenting in the spring. The report stated that with spring-time quickly approaching, the Equity and Empowerment Office will reengage this topic with the Citywide Family Council (CFC) and identify a date for when the CFC would like to make their annual presentation. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.3.6. Response to Motion 1.CSO of 02/03/21 by Hilary Clark Regarding Data Visualization Tool & Dashboards Dr. Guillory, Chief Schools Officer provided a report to the Committee regarding data visualization tool & dashboards. The report stated that the need for readily accessible, standardized data began at the beginning of the 2019-20 school year when asked “what was our attendance rate for the first day of school” and an answer was not readily available, nor was it a “click away” i.e. easily discernible. School leaders alike expressed the need to have “data/information” at their fingertips, that doesn’t require hours upon hours of their time and multiple steps to extract data from various sources. In early 2020, the district underwent a Request for Proposals (RFP) process to identify a data visualization vendor to assist the district with the development and implementation of a comprehensive data visualization solution and document such process as a future training tool. The RFP was released March 16, 2020 and Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 7 of 9) was open for two (2) weeks. Within that two (2) week span, eleven (11) responses were submitted for review. A committee made up of seven (7) district staff, ranging from central office staff to building level staff, came together to review and rate the proposals using a rubric-based rating scale. Based on the rating scale, three (3) vendors met the criteria and the district selection committee invited all three (3) vendors to demonstrate their product. Of the three (3) vendors, two (2) presented to the committee on April 16, 2020. The district selection committee presented the School Committee with a recommended vendor to move this project forward in April 2020. Due to the pandemic, the RFP was placed on hold and the district did not move forward with the recommended vendor at that time. Currently, the district uses various tools in order to analyze data - either for visual purposes or to provide simple statistics in order to meet the data request needs. Due to the pandemic and the RFP process being put on hold, the district will have to undergo another issuance of the Data Visualization RFP. Work is currently being done to investigate other companies as we have now solidified what types of dashboards we are interested in and will request the re-issuance of a refined, more comprehensive RFP in the coming months. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.3.6 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 8.4. Home Education Superintendent Boyd recommended that the following parents/guardians be allowed to home educate their child: Scott & Geovanie Scuturio Huertas 84 S. Highland Street Mr. Dillon made a motion to approve; seconded by Ms. Clark. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 9. NEW BUSINESS 9.1. Approval to Accept and Expend Allocated FY21 Awards Ms. Turner, Chief Financial Officer provided a report to the Committee stating that these funds include Federal and State awards that have been secured by the Lowell Public Schools through the Department of Secondary and Elementary Education, as well as, funding from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Mass Cultural Council. Ms. Doherty made a motion to approve and accept and expend the Allocated FY21 Awards; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 9.2. Vote to Accept a Donation of $533.00 from the Greater Lowell Community Foundation Ms. Turner, Chief Financial Officer provided a report to the Committee that the Lowell Public Schools has received a $533 donation from Mr. Joseph M. Mendonca, through the Greater Lowell Community Foundation. The funds are to be designated for general operating support to the Kathryn Stoklosa Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 8 of 9) Knowledge Bowl. Although, the Knowledge Bowl has been cancelled due to the pandemic, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation stated we can retain the funds for future use. The funds will be placed into a student activity account specifically designated for the Knowledge Bowl and will be utilized accordingly. Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the donation of $533.00 from the Greater Lowell Community Foundation; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED 10. PROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL 10.1. The Members of the United Teachers of Lowell Hereby Donate Fifteen [15] Sick Leave Days to Dorothy Miller Bartlett School Teacher Mr. Dillon made a motion approve; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 9 of 9) 11. ADJOURNMENT Ms. Clark made a motion to adjourn at 9:10 p.m.; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 vacancy APPROVED Respectfully submitted, Joel D. Boyd, Ed.D., Superintendent and Secretary to the Lowell School Committee JDB/mes Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us