School Committee

LOWELL SCHOOL COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Date: December 1, 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 6:41 p.m., members present were, namely: Mr. Descoteaux, Ms. Doherty, Mr. Lay, Mayor Leahy, Ms. Martin and Ms. Clark. Mr. Dillon was absent. 3. MINUTES 3.1. Approval of the Minutes of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, November 17, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the Regularly Scheduled and Special School Committee Meetings of Wednesday, November 17, 2021; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 3.2. Approval of the Minutes of the Special Meeting of the Lowell School Committee of Wednesday, November 17, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to accept and place on file the minutes from the Regularly Scheduled and Special School Committee Meetings of Wednesday, November 17, 2021; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 4. PERMISSION TO ENTER 4.1. Permission to Enter: December 1, 2021 Ms. Martin made a motion to approve the Permission to Enter; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 4.2. Approval of Updated Contracts for Chief Academic Officer Robin Desmond and Chief School Officer Liam Skinner to Include Additional Language in Paragraph 1 Ms. Doherty requested that moving forward all contracts include provision #7 that reads CERTIFICATE: SCHOOLS OFFICER shall furnish and maintain throughout the term of this contract a valid and Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 2 of 6) appropriate certificate qualifying him/her to act as an Assistant Superintendent of the Lowell School Department in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as required by Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 71, as amended by the Education Reform Act of 1993 and applicable provisions of 603 C.M.R. Ms. Martin made a motion to approve both Contracts for Chief Academic Officer/Assistant Superintendent Robin Desmond and Chief Schools Officer/Assistant Superintendent William Skinner as written; seconded by Ms. Clark. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 5. MEMORIALS 5.1. Kirk Czelewicz, Lowell High School Security Guard 6. MOTIONS 6.1. [By Andy Descoteaux]: Have the Superintendent reach out to Aramark and ask them to provide the School Committee with a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly menu for ALL of our schools. Is there a set size for portions, regardless of grade level? Have there been shortages of food items; for example, breakfast cereal without milk, or just a granola bar? Mr. Descoteaux made a motion to approve; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 6.2. [By Andy Descoteaux]: Ask that the Superintendent and Mayor set up a meeting with the City Manager and Facilities subcommittee members from both the City and LPS to discuss the feasibility of neighborhood schools and the acquisition of the St. Louis property which could solidify this process. Mr. Descoteaux made a motion to approve; seconded by Mr. Lay. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 6.3. [By Hilary Clark]: Review the current district dress code policy for cultural sensitivity and gender neutrality. Ms. Lundberg registered and spoke on agenda item 6.3. Ms. Clark made a motion to approve; seconded by Ms. Martin. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 7. SUBCOMMITTEES 7.1. Finance Subcommittee: Report and Approval of the Minutes of the Meeting of Wednesday, November 17, 2021 [Connie Martin, Chairperson] Ms. Martin, Chairperson of the Finance Subcommittee stated that the intent of the meeting was to clear up what has been brought forward by the school administration regarding contract review. Ms. Martin stated that that the Law Department annually reviews approximately 400 contracts from departments throughout the city and that since the pandemic, the number of contracts and amendments process has Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 3 of 6) increased significantly. It was agreed upon that the School Department and the Law Department will meet bi-weekly to avoid any future issues with the contracts. Ms. Martin also stated that authorized positions to have contracts were discussed and that the issue was resolved when the Chief’s contracts were voted on and approved. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the report as a report of progress; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 8. REPORTS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT 8.1. COVID-19 Update Dr. Hall, Chief Operating Officer provided the Committee with a report that gave them a COVID-19 Data monitoring update that included Lowell Public Schools COVID positive cases, Pool Testing Participation and Testing Services (symptomatic testing, “test and stay” and routine COVID Pooled testing). Superintendent Boyd stated that the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has stated that if the COVID numbers continue to surge they will look into additional resources for testing. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.4 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 8.2. Social Emotional Learning and Mental Health Supports Ms. Desmond, Chief Academic Officer provided a PowerPoint presentation to the Committee about Social Emotional Learning and Mental Health Supports. The report included the following:  How do we support positive mental health and social emotional learning in our schools?  What does the current data tell us?  What additional resources can be provided to further support positive mental health and social emotional learning for all students.  What are the next steps? The presentation also spoke about DESSA SEL Assessment, Second Step, Open Circle and the Restorative Justice Model. Ms. Doherty stated that she doesn’t want to put more money into staff without knowing what we have and believes that the district should have an audit on mental health services. Mr. Descoteaux stated that staff should be involved in the audit as well. Ms. Martin asked for a flow chart at the next meeting that reported out on the reporting structure of the district’s social workers. Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 4 of 6) Ms. Clark made a motion to post twenty-nine (29) Social Worker positions as well as develop an RFP as a contingency if open positions do not attract enough applicants; seconded by Ms. Doherty. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED Ms. Doherty made a motion to have a third party audit around mental health services to our students; seconded by Ms. Martin. 4 yeas, 2 nays (Mr. Lay, Ms. Clark), 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.4 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 8.3. Budget Update Ms. Turner, Chief Financial Officer gave the Committee a budget update that included the following:  Continuous Review of Two (2) Budget Years Simultaneously to Ensure Maximizing Every Funding Stream  Review of Current FY21/22 Financials  Grant Review/Staffing  Projections of Budget Busters  Strategize Leveraging all Projected Year End Balances  Next Steps for FY22/23 Budget Process  Determine Net Effect of Current Year’s Reallocations on Next Year’s Budget  ESSER Update – Less spent this year results in more available next year  Strategies on how to maximize the amount carried over to assist with learning loss for next year, too. Ms. Doherty requested that the Committee receive the year to date budget report quarterly. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.4 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 8.4. Enrollment Report Ms. Phillips, Chief Equity & Engagement Officer provided a report to the Committee that informed them the total enrollment on the November enrollment report is 14,976, and as of Wednesday, November 24th, the total number of K-12 students in the FRC category was eighty-five (85). Additionally, fifty-six (56) pre-K students remained on the waitlist and two (2) were in the “other” early childhood designation for a total of 143 in the FRC category. Of the eighty-five (85) K-12 students in the FRC category, thirty- five (31) have completed the paperwork process and have now received or are pending their school placements and of the remaining fifty-four (54) students, twenty (20) students are awaiting medical clearance and thirty-four (34) are recent registrants who are still in the process of gathering/submitting required documentation. The report stated that while 14,112 students are currently attending Lowell Public Schools, the district’s official annual enrollment is based on a snapshot from October 1st. For this current school year, the Office of Performance Management confirmed a student enrollment number of 14,001, however, this number will fluctuate plus or minus, based on the Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 5 of 6) number of students who are also being claimed by another school district. The report stated that after conducting their portion of the student data certification process, Lowell Public Schools resulted in a state-reported enrollment number of 13,991 students. This number will continue to be reviewed and verified throughout the school year. Ms. Martin made a motion to accept the following Reports of the Superintendent 8.1 through 8.4 as reports of progress; seconded by Mr. Descoteaux. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED 9. NEW BUSINESS 9.1. Budget Transfer Ms. Clark made a motion to approve the budget transfer of $496,760; seconded by Ms. Doherty. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) APPROVED Lowell Public Schools • 155 Merrimack Street • Lowell, MA 01852 • http://www.lowell.k12.ma.us  (Page 6 of 6) 10. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Descoteaux made a motion to adjourn at 8:57 p.m.; seconded by Ms. Clark. 6 yeas, 1 absent (Mr. Dillon) 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