School Committee

LOWELL SCHOOL COMMITTEE SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES Date: September 23, 2021 Time: 5:00PM Location: City Council Chamber, 375 Merrimack Street, 2nd Floor, Lowell, MA 01852 1. SALUTE TO FLAG 2. ROLL CALL On a roll call at 5:00 p.m., members present were, namely: Ms. Clark, Mr. Descoteaux, Mr. Dillon, Ms. Doherty, Mr. Lay, Mayor Leahy and Ms. Martin. 3. NEW BUSINESS 3.1. Item: Family Resource Center, student placements for 2021-2022 and other related matters Mayor Leahy open up the special meeting regarding student placements for 2021-2022 and other related matters. Mayor Leahy, Mr. Descoteaux, Ms. Doherty and Ms. Martin all stated that they were concerned about the 394 students that still have not been placed into the schools as well as not being informed that so many kids had not been given their assignments yet. The above members stated that they are also concerned about the impact this is having on Lowell Public School students after being out of school during the pandemic. They also addressed the current systems in place and if they’re effectively working. Ms. Clark asked about the registration systems that the district is using and if they need to be looked at to determine how if needed to make the systems function better. Mr. Dillon stated he believes this is an issue that occurs every year and that he didn’t believe a special meeting was needed to discuss this. Superintendent Boyd stated that immunization verification and English Language testing are the primary reasons for the delayed placements, with seventy-six (76) students affected by immunization verification, nine (9) by English Language testing and sixty-five (65) for English Language and immunization verification. He stated that the English Language testing is processed in-house, but the immunization verification is a collaborative process with the Health Department. The slide that was showed to the Committee that was Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 2 of 3) part of a bigger PowerPoint presentation that the Superintendent had planned to share also included ten (10) student records (Lowell High), thirty-one (31) no documents, 100 Pre-K and Early Childhood students and fifteen (15) are other. Ms. Phillips, Chief Equity & Engagement Officer stated that she believes the verifications should be completed in the next couple days. She stated that the district policy states that students can’t be assigned to a school until their immunization cards have been read. She stated that since school started 255 new students have enrolled and that it’s not unusual to have several hundred new students enroll after the school year begins. Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 3 of 3) 4. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Dillon made a motion to adjourn at 5:42 p.m.; seconded by Ms. Doherty. 7 yeas APPROVED Respectfully submitted, Joel D. Boyd, ED.d. Superintendent and Secretary to the School Committee JDB/mes Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us