Woodrow Wilson Building Committee

02/08/2021 Page 1 Committee Members Committee Staff Councilman Gene Nocera, Co-Chair Dr. Michael Conner; Superintendent Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell Co-Chair Marco Gaylord; Director Operations Councilman Philip Pessina Vice-Chair Elise McDermott; Finance and Budget Kristy Byrd Peter Staye; Director Facilities Sheila Daniels Erin Thazhampallath; Secretary John Giuliano Richard Pelletier John Phillips Theodore Raczka Stephen Zarger Anita Dempsey-White SPECIAL Meeting Minutes ***Online WEBEX*** Woodrow Wilson Building Committee Monday, February 8, 2021 6:00 P.M Members Present: Councilman Gene Nocera Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell Councilman Philip J. Pessina Stephen Zarger John Giuliano Sheila Daniels Kristy Byrd Members Absent: Richard Pelletier John Phillips Theodore Raczka Anita Dempsey-White Staff Present: Marco Gaylord; Director Operations Peter Staye; Director Facilities Erin Thazhampallath; Secretary Others Present: Joe Vetro; Project Manager, O&G Industries Michael C. Scott; Senior Architect, TSKP Jeannette O'Connell; TSKP Members of the Public: John Geary  02/08/2021 Page 2 1. Councilman Gene Nocera, Co-Chair calls the meeting to order at 6:07pm. 2. Actions Items: ● TSKP FF&E Status Update: Presented by Jeannette O'Connell; TSKP and Michael Scott; TSKP Michael Scott begins the discussion reviewing that the Committee had a discussion last month regarding the furniture, fixture, and equipment package. TSKP is attempting to finalize and get approval on this package so they can take it to the State and issue purchase orders. The State will participate in funding this purchase and therefore have a lot of interest in the package content and do not review it until it is signed off by the Building Committee and the BOE. This meeting was called to review four areas in particular: The ICM suite: Jeannette O'Connell explains that Marco Gaylord went back and met with those involved in the setup of the ICM Room and in going back it was discussed by the Administration that the only change was to remove the door on the ‘Cool Down’ room. As far as FF&E we are good in this room. Councilman Gene Nocera asks Marco Gaylord to explain the reasoning behind the open door in that room. Gaylord explains that having a door in this room poses another level of regulations. The purpose of that room is to cool down and de-escalate. Nocera explains that a closed door is not a physical space we want for kids potentially in a distressed state of mind. Gaylord agrees with Nocera. Councilman Philip Pessina asks if multiple students would be in that room and if there would be staff supervision. Garylord explains that he does not see that more than one student would be in that room and this model is concurrent with models at our other schools and other school districts. Sheila Daniels comments that the concerns have been addressed and thanks TSKP for going back and reviewing this space. The Library Furniture: Jeannette O'Connell explains that the principle has looked at the current Library layout and has given approval. The principle stated that classes are not held in the library and felt there was enough seating available. Marco Gaylord states that there are other large spaces available for larger numbers of students to gather. Sheila Daniels states that she is surprised that that was reported to the team. She expresses that currently she thought classes did go into the media center. Daniels is still concerned that there is not more space and she is disappointed in the set up. Councilman Gene Nocera states that, as a former principal, he has seen many situations where a teacher would bring a full class into the library. Nocera asks if, given the setup, there is the possibility for a classroom of students to meet in the Library space. Marco Gaylord thanks Daniels and Nocera for their comments and states that he did have lengthy conversations with the staff and he was told there is enough space to hold a class in this room. Now that students have chromebooks the idea of a media center has changed. He was reminded that the format of research and media centers have really changed but this space has the ability to meet the needs of the students. Michael Scott encourages the committee to, at some point, see this space. The layout allows for the teacher or librarian to move and monitor students. He feels this room is very flexible and  02/08/2021 Page 3 works for smaller groups working on individual or project teams while also allowing for 32 students to be addressed simultaneously. Daniels asks about other options for configurations and expresses she wants to see this room used to its fullest. Scott explains the configuration of the work tables and higher tables in the back. Scott explains that if a class of 25 people came into the room that those students can be accommodated and a teacher would be able to stand anywhere in the room and stand and address those students. He feels this is a good open plan. Councilman Philip Pessina states that Scott's comments about a teacher having the ability to see all the students in the room is a good explanation and he feels comfortable with the room. Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell states that she appreciates the conversation and wants to make sure the space offers the flexibility needed and we don’t want to restrict the area. Pessina asks how Scott determined the need for the five bookcases. Scott states that they took the same amount of shelving in the first floor current media center and replicated that. Pessina states that we wouldn’t want to move any shelving out when this is what was needed. Nocera states that the librarian and teachers have been asked and they agreed with the space so we will honor that. The Fitness Room: Councilwoman Blackwell states that Marco Gaylord went back and met with Kristy Byrd and walked through the building and there will be no changes in the fitness room plan. Nothing will be added or taken out and no changes will be made. Gaylord states that he did that walk-through with some members of the PE and Athletic Department and they reviewed it and approved. They also confirmed that we will be transporting the dead weight racks and benches from the current school into the new room which will save a considerable amount of funds. The PE Office: There are two PE offices, one for women and one for men. There was a request for more storage in this space. Overhead shelving was added above the desks and additional millwork was also included (not part of FF&E) which gives even more overhead storage. TSKP also added three large cabinets and overhead millwork cabinets so this can be used for equipment and storage. Kristy Byrd thanks Marco Gaylord for giving the PE staff the opportunity to go in and see the site and having the communication with them. Sheila Daniels asks if the millwork storage is reachable. Scott states that this is for items that are not needed daily. It is higher than an overhead desk storage but this millwork is used in the steam room and art rooms for once a year unit storage not necessarily daily storage. Marco Gaylord states that we have similar storage at the high school with the proper stools to reach those items and those will be available at the new school as well. John Giuliano asks about the mobility of the furniture and if they are permanently mounted. Jeannette O'Connell states that they can be moved but they aren't necessarily mobile. She states these desk/work stations will not be moved easily. O'Connell states that she followed up with John Giuliano with his questions from the last Committee meeting. Sheila Daniels asks if there will be high shelves in the class rooms and Michael Scott answers that they typically do not have those high points in the classrooms other than the tall  02/08/2021 Page 4 bookcases, which give the room and space flexibility. Daniels asks if those are accessible. O'Connell explains it would be the same situation as in the pe office as far as reachability. Sheila Daniels asks about the chairs with the casters. Is there any mechanism where the chairs could lock into place when weight is put on them for those with disabilities? O'Connell explains that there is no locking mechanism on these rollers. Daniels expresses that this may be setting aside those with disabilities. It was discussed that there would be chairs available for those with special needs and there may be a need to bring in a different type of chair. Daniels explains she feels it is important for her to advocate and make sure those with disabilities do not feel different than the other students. She expresses she is just trying to think of these different questions and is trying to think of all of these possibilities. O'Connell states that she appreciates these questions and explains that in the past, furniture for those with disabilities really stood out as being different but there has really been an effort and move to make sure these differences are not so apparent. Councilman Gene Nocera states that, in his experience, these casters are not super slick and they aren’t easily gliding chairs. Councilman Philip Pessina asks if the casters are removable. Michale Scott states that they are removable but you would need additional hardware to replace them. O'Connell states that she has seen the casters reconfigured and this is a unique design to be able to transform these chairs if needed. Scott states that these are important issues and because of the clearances there are subtle differences in all of the furniture for modifications. Kids no longer have to sit at different tables and such. Any table and chair is convertible and they try as much as possible to specify so that these items are all similar to what the other students get. Some of these issues can be addressed on a student by student basis to modify for the students needs. Nocera states that casters are listed as a universal design for learning and often they provide great flexibility and we can and will certainly adjust to students' needs. Councilman Gene Nocera asks Jeannette O'Connell about the Nursing Station and if the current plan is to integrate the Community Health and BOE Nursing staff in the same area. O'Connell states that they occupy their own space but with adjoining doors. They are separate but next door to each other. Nocera states that he was hoping that was the design. Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell asks for clarification on how we are resolving the questions concerning the chairs and casters. Nocera states that this will be based on student need and this is, theoretically, a matter that will go through the PPT process to design the learning needs of the students as well as the students physical needs. If the student needs a specific furniture then the BOE will meet those needs as has always been the process. Marco Gaylord adds that whenever there is a need for a student the BOE will provide for the students specific needs. Councilman Philip Pessina asks what the next steps are. Michael Scott states that TSKP will bring this FF&E Package to the BOE on February 9th and then it is taken to the State.  02/08/2021 Page 5 Sheila Daniels asks if the test furniture was brought into the current school as a test and if they were received well. Jeannette O'Connell expresses that they were received well by teachers and students. Daniels expresses that she feels it may be important to share that feedback with the BOE when the FF&E Package is presented to them. Councilman Gene Nocera calls for a motion to Approve the FF&E package and budget for OSCGR (Office of School Construction Grant & Review) State Review. Motion by Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell and seconded by Councilman Philip Pessina. Motion passed unanimously. 3. Motion by Councilwoman Jeanette Blackwell and seconded by Councilman Philip Pessina to Adjourn the meeting at 6:59pm. Motion passed unanimously. Respectfully Submitted, Erin Thazhampallath Recording Secretary