The meeting began with the normal Call to Order, Agenda Review, and Flag Salute. The first Community Comments portion of the meeting included no comments.
The Consent Agenda included the approval of a warrant, contracts, and minutes from several regular, contract for administration and support staff, and committee meetings. A board member pointed out a charge of $850 for education law books that the superintendent will look into canceling. The superintendent read the Governor’s proclamation relating to recognizing school boards and making February School Board Appreciation Month.
The Principle’s Presentation (more details in the LCATV video) was moved earlier in the night due to a MES presentation by the kids at the end to get the kids out of the meeting. Like all principal presentations they are formatted to discuss work completed towards the goals of:
1) Student Achievement and Success – To foster curious and passionate learners through opportunities that further their academic knowledge and skills and meet the challenges of a changing world.
2) Social-Emotional Health and Well-being – To prioritize the health and well-being of all members of the learning organization through programming that promotes care for the heart, mind, and body.
3) Family & Student Engagement – To cultivate engaged citizens inspired to meet the demands of a changing society through an awareness of self, others, and the world around them in the local and global context.
Regarding Goal 1, an MES presentation Fall/Winter 2024/2025 for grades 1-4 showing generally significant improvement between test periods for each grade. Graphs and reports are in the packet for review. Regarding Goal 2, charts provided in the packet showed significant declines from the 23/24 to 24/25 school years for the months of December and January. Additional topics relating to this goal were provided in the packet. Regarding Goal 3, a Costco Reading Program where readers come in was discussed. Also GlobalFoundries Ambassadors assisted STEAM Unified Arts classes learn how light is a form of energy and is used in the production of circuits on their wafers.
The 3rd grade kids presentation was on a “belonging survey” where the kids analyzed the results and came up with a plan to address a lack of kids answering positively to the question “I like the way that I am.” Students created a video to share with their peers to share after February break.
The Reports to the Board portion of the meeting included:
– Superintendent’s report which is in the meeting packet for additional details, discusses MTSD Leadership Team currently completing a Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CAN) in preparation for updating the Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP) for presenting to board later this spring before submitting to state for feedback and approval. It also, provided details of a professional development program the superintendent is currently taking. Additionally, discussed the many policies the school has that overwhelm teachers and things the district is doing to focus on policies related the student safety and services including C12: Prevention of Sexual Harassment as Prohibited by Title IX, C14: Section 504 and ADA Grievance Protocol for Students and Staff, and F4: Access Control and Visitor Management. Finally, she gave a legislative update that mentions discussions on or bills related to cell-phone free schools, pausing PCB testing, school construction aid, universal meals, and the role of the State Board of Education versus Agency of Education along with everything being discussed relating to the governor’s proposal to change education.
– Committee reports including Facilities and Policy. The Facilities Committee received a design for the rainwater catch system for the HS. Ventilation for the soldering station in the new Milton Innovation Center needs upgrades. Electrical is beginning for the mini-splits. The carpets are going to get cleaned at Herrick. The Policy Committee discussed a number of polices that are up for adoption and/or at various stages of the update process.
The Discussion portion of the meeting included:
– Policy review – The board discussed a number of policies with the most discussion on the School Board Code of Conduct policy.
– Copier contract expiring and costs for upkeep increasing. Looking at the costs associated with the group bidding process that’s upcoming and planning to bring a recommendation back to board once numbers come in.
– Insurance Open Enrollment is proposed to shift from being calendar year instead of fiscal year with the benefits being in alignment with the calendar year, financial planning, and employee clarity. If approved, a process timeline for transitioning from one to the other was presented that would include a “short year” covering July through December 2025.
– FY26 Budget Promotion to discuss if there was anything more the board wanted to do to promote the budget/bond items to the town. Discussed splitting up vote day to be at the polls to answer questions.
The second Community Comments portion of the meeting included several comments.
The first commenter, thanked the chair who was not running for reelection, noted support for the budget and bond which will result in a reduced property tax this year, asked if the district is reimbursed when the bus company is unable to run bus routes, and indicated that the draft Board Conduct policy was unnecessary and would only hinder the board and the will of the voters.
The second commenter, presented concerns with the draft Board Conduct policy and Pupil Privacy Rights policy. They also commented that the board did a very good job this past difficult year.
The third commenter, wants a duplicative Board Conduct policy even though the state has a just passed a Municipal Code of Ethics (https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/fullchapter/24/060) and the Town of Milton has in its town charter both a Code of Ethics and a Conflict of Interest with a process for addressing violations (https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/chapter/24APPENDIX/129) and the Milton Town School District already has Policy A1 – Board Member Conflict of Interest (https://4.files.edl.io/6b82/02/09/24/185729-57a81065-fa37-4940-9aca-3f5c5219ddcf.pdf) and signs a code of ethics as found in the meeting’s packet (https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15OwFze9nJ7QvDsupRX5X3h8xByiaVoZW). She also commented on the Governor’s new education proposal, that the PTA would be providing information on the budget once approved by the school, and noting appreciation to the board for the level service budget.
The final commenter, indicated that some of the terminology used in policy B20 Personnel Recruitment, Selection, and Appointment (Recommended) could be legally problematic if not properly defined and that some charged words may need to be modified.
The Action Items portion of the meeting included Insurance Open Enrollment vote to go to calendar year.
The Board Comments portion of the meeting included comments showing appreciation towards the board chair who will not be returning to the new board. The board chair had comments in return for members of the board.
An Executive Session anticipated to conclude the night was cancelled.