School Committee

LOWELL SCHOOL COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Date: August 25, 2021 Time: 6:30PM Location: City Council Chamber, 375 Merrimack Street, 2nd Floor, Lowell, MA 01852 1. SALUTE TO FLAG 2. ROLL CALL On a roll call at 6:40 p.m., members present were, namely: Mr. Dillon, Ms. Doherty, Mr. Lay, Mayor Leahy, Ms. Martin and Ms. Clark. Mr. Descoteaux was absent. 3. MINUTES 3.1. Approval Of The Minutes Of The Special Meeting Of The Lowell School Committee Of Monday, August 2, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the Special School Committee Meetings of Monday, August 2, 2021 and Wednesday, August 11, 2021; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 3.2. Approval Of The Minutes Of The Special Meeting Of The Lowell School Committee Of Wednesday, August 11, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the Special School Committee Meetings of Monday, August 2, 2021 and Wednesday, August 11, 2021; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 4. PERMISSION TO ENTER 4.1 Permission to Enter: August 25, 2021 (Suspension of the Rules Needed) Ms. Doherty made a motion to suspend the rules to allow a time sensitive agenda item under Permission to Enter be added and voted on due do it not being on the agenda; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Ms. Clark made a motion to approve the Permission to Enter (Grabro LLC/dba Servpro) in the amount of $152,000; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 2 of 7) 5 SUBCOMMITTEES 5.1. Human Resources & Labor Relations Subcommittee: Report and Approval of the Minutes of the Meeting of Thursday, May 27, 2021 [Hilary Clark, Chairperson] Chairperson Clark, informed the Committee that the Human Resources and Labor Relations Subcommittee discussed the following job descriptions and make recommendations moving forward: 1. Dropout Prevention 2. Lowell High School House Deans 3. Community Schools Manager 4. McKinney-Vento Services for Students Experiencing Homelessness 5. LHS Strength and Conditioning Coach. These positions appear on the agenda under New Business for approval and will be voted on during that portion of the meeting. Ms. Doherty made a motion to accept the Human Resources & Labor Relations Subcommittee report as a report of progress; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 6. REPORTS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT 6.1. School Opening Update Mr. Skinner, Chief Schools Officer provided an update to the Committee. The report included the following: ➢ Update on Dashboard Items ➢ Facilities Update ➢ Readiness Timeline Ms. Doherty asked about the registration and placement of students. Ms. Phillips stated that parents have been emailed with their child’s placement. A parent should contact the school department if they haven’t received it. Ms. Doherty also asked about screen and shades in schools. Dr. Hall stated that he didn’t have that information on hand, but will provide it to her. Ms. Doherty asked that the information be included on the agenda at the September 1, 2021 School Committee meeting. Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the Reports of the Superintendent 6.1 and 6.5 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 3 of 7) 6.2. COVID-19 Update The following people registered and spoke on this agenda item: Chris Mercurio Danielle Mazzeo Andrew Chabak Joanne Meuse Ms. Busteed, District Safety Specialist provided a COVID-19 Update to the Committee that included the following: ➢ Testing Services included in COVID-19 testing Program o Symptomatic Testing o Test and Stay (Close Contact Testing) o Routine COVID Pooled Testing ➢ Protocols ➢ COVID-19 Symptoms ➢ Upcoming Testing Procedure Mr. Dillon requested that the School Committee have a meeting with the City Manager to discuss the mask mandate. Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the Reports of the Superintendent 6.1 and 6.5 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 6.3. Response To Motion Of 07/21/21 By Jackie Doherty Regarding Inclusive Curriculum Across Grades Ms. Desmond, Chief Academic Officer provided a report to the Committee that informed them that the Office of Teaching & Learning is committed to providing a high-quality and inclusive curriculum for all students. The focus is to expand student access to high quality, standards aligned curricular materials that improve student outcomes. Through an inclusive, culturally responsive approach, student’s culture and identity (including race, ethnicity, multilingualism, and other characteristics) are viewed as assets that help to create learning experiences and environments that value and empower students. The overview included ELA, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the Reports of the Superintendent 6.1 and 6.5 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 4 of 7) 6.4. List Of Eligible Teachers The List of Eligible Teachers officially informs the Committee of all eligible teachers by subject and grade. Ms. Doherty asked how many staff still need to be hired. Dr. Hall stated one (1) or less per school. Ms. Martin made a motion to investigate with the State the process of cleaning up the List of Eligible Teachers (removal of retired teachers, etc.); seconded by Ms. Doherty. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the Reports of the Superintendent 6.1 and 6.5 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 6.5 Personnel Report The Personnel Report officially informs the Committee of all retirements, resignations, promotions and new hires. Ms. Clark made a motion to accept the Reports of the Superintendent 6.1 and 6.5 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 6.6. Home Education Superintendent Boyd recommended that the following parents/guardians be allowed to home educate their child: Brigid Justinien 59 Raven Road Destinie Lima 736 Princeton Blvd. #24 Nissa Raposo & Elizabeth Raposo 48 Perron Way Pricilla Stasiunas Mello Souza 105 Mt. Vernon Steet, Apt. 3 Taylor Magee 851 Bridge Street Ivette Santos 58 7th Street Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 5 of 7) Sharlynna Luong 511 Douglas Road Soriya Liv 26 Dover Street Laura Wreh 63 Lakeview Avenue Ms. Martin made a motion to approve; seconded by Ms. Doherty. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 7. NEW BUSINESS 7.1. Consideration Of Revised Job Descriptions From Personnel Subcommittee Of August 11. 2021 Dr. Hall provided job descriptions with the recommended changes for the Committee’s review. 7.2. Permission To Post: Strength And Conditioning Coach Mr. Dillon made a motion to bundle, post and approve Items # 7.2 through Items 7.6; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 7.3. Permission To Post: McKinney-Vento Liaison (Transportation) Mr. Dillon made a motion to post and approve Items # 7.2 through Items 7.6; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 7.4. Permission To Post: McKinney-Vento Liaison (High School) Mr. Dillon made a motion to post and approve Items # 7.2 through Items 7.6; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 7.5. Permission To Post: McKinney-Vento Liaison (Unaccompanied Youth) Mr. Dillon made a motion to post and approve Items # 7.2 through Items 7.6; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED 7.6. Permission To Post: Director Of Student Resource Center Mr. Dillon made a motion to post and approve Items # 7.2 through Items 7.6; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 6 of 7) 8. COMMUNICATIONS 8.1. LPS Districtwide Organizational Chart Ms. Doherty requested that this be deferred to the agenda for the September 1, 2021 School Committee meeting for further discussion. Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 7 of 7) 9. ADJOURNMENT Ms. Clark made a motion to adjourn at 8:54 p.m.; seconded by Mr. Dillon. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Descoteaux) 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