Meeting Recap: 4/29/24

Hello everyone, and welcome to new followers. Since November, I’ve been trying to provide short recaps of our regular meetings. Below is a top level summary of what I consider the key takeaways from the April 29 meeting. My personal commentary is offered in square brackets but nothing in this post represents any official position of the school committee or district.

You can view the meeting agenda here and the recording (timestamped to start after our executive session) here.

1. Superintendent’s update - including Ethics Bowl, city-wide clean up, National Child Abuse Prevention Month, reminders about Walk/Bike/Roll to School Day (Wednesday, May 1), middle school open houses, and School Lunch Hero Day (Friday, May 3).

2. Fine & Performing Arts updates - including new courses and technology, community-focused projects, awards & recognition, grants, partnerships, performances, summer programs, and more [These were perhaps the most joyful updates I’ve seen at a school committee meeting—please make sure you find an activity or few to enjoy during MPS Arts Month in May! The calendar is linked from this news post: https://roberts.mps02155.org/about/roberts-es-news/roberts-es-news-post/~board/mps-news/post/may-is-arts-month-at-medford-public-schools]

3. There was some back and forth about resolution 2024-24 (re: use of fossil fuel products in school buildings) and the protocols for moving school building update projects forward, but this was eventually tabled for the scheduled presentation about HVAC updates to the Andrews and McGlynn complex. Representatives from the district, the city, and a consulting engineering firm offered a plan for replacing the end-of-life system and anticipated follow-on (roof, testing options for other buildings) with a reduction (but not elimination) of fossil fuel dependency. After more than an hour of presentation, discussion, and questions, this was approved with regular updates requested.

4. Suspension & discipline report presented by the superintendent. [I don’t have a lot to say about this, as we received the report just before the meeting and it mostly presents high level overview data about what has happened over the past year. Suffice it to say, I am sure the conversation will continue at various levels.]

5. Rate card - We received a packet listing past and current rates, as well as supporting documentation, for fee-based services provided by the district to the community. We voted to approve a 10% increase to facility and pool rentals. Other fee structures will be proposed and voted on in a future meeting. [These all connect to the discussions we’ve been having in our budget meetings and the use of “revolving funds” which are funds that collect income that is used to cover operational costs of the services that the funds, uh, fund. Many of the operational costs have previously been paid for out of the general budget rather than the revolving accounts, so part of the budget reconciliation process is looking more carefully at these funds and the fees charged for these services.]

6. Massachusetts Association of School Committees annual conference - Members Olapade and Ruseau were nominated and approved as the alternate/delegate for this event in November.

7. Three resolutions to convene subcommittee meetings - Strategic & Capital Planning (to review and update the district’s Capital Needs Assessment & Planning document); Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment, and Accountability (to develop a review process for newly adopted curricula and assessment tools); Special Education & Behavioral Health (to discuss the potential co-location of Curtis-Tufts School within the new Medford HS campus) - On this last point (actually voted on second), the committee heard brief testimony from Jack Haverty, the assistant principal of Somerville’s counterpart school to the Curtis-Tufts. [He will, we hope, join the subcommittee meeting, which is tasked with providing a recommendation to the MSBA building committee by June 3.] 

8. Taking resolution 2024-24 back off the table for final voting, we approved the resolution to ban fossil fuel products in major equipment purchases for school buildings without the express permission of the school committee. In order to comply with the proposal to review all such purchases, they will be incorporated into the consent agenda offered at the beginning of each meeting, along with donations and field trip requests. [This means we can still ask questions about these proposals, but do not need to hear presentations about each and every purchase, donation, field trip, etc. I believe this resolution is coming at a future meeting.]

9. No reports requested, no condolences, just adjournment. Next meeting is May 6 at 6 p.m. with a public budget hearing beforehand (5 p.m. in chambers and on Zoom).