Minutes 2013-12-02

YORK SUBURBAN SCHOOL BOARD
RE-ORGANIZATION MEETING
DECEMBER 2, 2013 – 7:30 PM
VALLEY VIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL – STAFF DEVELOPMENT ROOM

M I N U T E S
(approved on December 16, 2013)

Call to Order – Ms. Leopold-Sharp
1. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag
  Ms. Leopold-Sharp called the meeting to order with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
The re-organization of the Board takes place for the election of a President and Vice-President and the setting of dates and times of meetings for the coming school year.
Section 402 of the School Code states, “…that there shall be elected from the hold-over members a temporary President to chair the Re-organization meeting, and the Secretary of the Board shall act as Secretary of such meeting.”

Items of business are as follows:
1. Election of Temporary President [Motion; Public Comment; Roll Call Vote]
  Motion, Miller Second, Sears; Nomination of Jennifer Clancy as Temporary President.
  
  An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
  
  Roll Call Vote, all present, yes. Motion carried 7-0.
2. Reading of the Certificates of Election for Elected Board Members
  Mrs. Clancy read the Certificates of Election.
3. Swearing in of Elected Board Members
  Mrs. Clancy led the swearing in of the elected Board members, Emily Bates, Ellen C. Freireich, Lynne A. Leopold-Sharp and Cathy Shaffer.
4. Roll Call
  Members present – Emly Bates, Jennifer Clancy, Ellen Freireich, Lynne Leopold-Sharp, Roger Miller, Lois Ann Schroeder, Joel Sears, Cathy Shaffer, Alison Liu (Student Representative)
5. Report of Nominating Committee – Mrs. Clancy
  Mrs. Clancy reported the Nominating Committee met on November 21 and minutes are included with the Planning Committee meeting agenda this evening.
  1. Election of President [Motion; Public Comment; Roll Call Vote]
    Motion, Schroeder, Second, Sears; Nomination of Roger Miller as President.
    
    An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
    
    Roll Call Vote, all present, yes. Motion carried 8-0.
    
    Mrs. Clancy turned over the Chair to the newly elected President, Mr. Miller.
    
    Mr. Miller announced his resignation as Treasurer of the Board since a member cannot hold more than one office on the Board.
    
    Motion, Leopold-Sharp, Second, Shaffer; Accept resignation of Roger Miller as Treasurer of the Board.
    
    Roll Call Vote, all present, yes. Motion carried 8-0.
  2. Election of Vice-President [Motion; Public Comment; Roll Call Vote]
    Motion, Shaffer, Second, Bates; Nomination of Lynne A. Leopold-Sharp as Vice-President.
    
    An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
    
    Roll Call Vote, all present, yes. Motion carried 8-0.
    
    Motion, Sears, Second, Leopold-Sharp; Nomination of Jennifer Clancy as Treasurer.
    
    Mr. Miller added that the term for Treasurer does end May 2014.
    
    Roll Call Vote, all present, yes. Motion carried 8-0.
6. Appointment of Solicitor. The administration recommends the appointment of the firm Stock and Leader as Solicitor of the district for the 2014 year. [Motion; Public Comment; Vote]
  Motion, Clancy, Second, Shaffer, and unanimously passed 8-0; approval of above.
7. Appointment of Auditor. The administration recommends the extension of the auditing services contract to Smith Elliott Kearns & Company, LLC for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years at $22,900 and $23,600 respectively. [Motion; Public Comment; Vote]
  Motion, Schroeder, Second, Bates, and unanimously passed 8-0; approval of above.
8. 2014 Meeting Schedule of Planning Committee and Regular Monthly Meetings. The administration recommends the approval of the meeting schedule for 2014. Voting will only take place at regular monthly meetings unless advertised otherwise. All times are at 7:30 PM and the place where the meetings will be held is the Ronald H. Provard Education Center unless advertised otherwise. [Motion; Public Comment; Roll Call Vote]
  Motion, Leopold-Sharp, Second, Bates; approval of above.
  
  A discussion continued. Points of the discussion included – two Tuesday meetings were necessary due to holidays, Easter and Memorial Day, and the timing of 30 days for budget adoption; location of meetings, consider Valley View location for future meetings because it allows more space for community members, ample room around the table is available and an adjoining room is available for Executive Session.
  
  Dr. Merkle commented that there is some extra work required for set-up during the afternoon and asked Dr. Ketterman if this room could accommodate the meeting schedule. Dr. Ketterman replied that it can be arranged.
  
  Motion, Leopold-Sharp, Second, Bates, and unanimously passed 8-0; Amend motion to have the routine meeting location be the Valley View Staff Development Room.
  
  Mr. Miller announced the location change will be effective starting in January 2014.
9. Committee Assignments
  1. Policy No. 005 – Local Board Procedures – Organization
    
    Mr. Miller asked Board members to let him know what committees they are interested in serving. On December 16, committee structure will be available to allow the new Board member placement on committees.
10. Miscellaneous Board Representative Assignments
  1. Lincoln Intermediate Unit 12 Board Representative – Three-year term to commence on July 1, 2014 and will expire on June 30, 2017. Mr. Sears is current District representative.
  2. PSBA – Legislative Policy and Liaison
  3. York Adams Academy Board Representative
  4. York Area Tax Bureau and York Tax Collection Committee
  5. York County School of Technology Operating Committee/Authority Member – Three-year term to commence on January 1, 2013 and will expire on December 31, 2015. Mrs. Schroeder is District representative. An Alternate is needed.
  6. York County School of Technology Joint Operating Authority
  7. York/LIU Joint Authority Board Representative – Five-year term to commence January 1, 2014. Mr. Sears’ term expires December 31, 2013.
  8. York Learning Center Joint Operating Authority Board Member
Adjournment
Mr. Miller shared several comments on Board practices before adjourning the Re-Organization Meeting. The Superintendent or Acting Superintendent and Board President are the spokespersons for Board for newspaper and solicitor. If contacted by a newspaper, Board members can give their opinion but not speak for the Board. The solicitor will take calls and emails only from the Superintendent or Acting Superintendent and Board President.

We will have disagreements in the next few months, I request and strongly encourage you to please be respectful of each other’s opinions, and when we walk out of here we can be friends not enemies. Be respectful of administrator’s time with turnover of administration. If a Board member has a concern or complaint, this information should be shared with myself first and I will contact Dr. Merkle if deemed necessary. Mr. DeHaas commented previously that one person works for the Board and that is the Superintendent and everyone else works for the Superintendent. We as Board members must remember that and not go out and micro-manage and overstep the administration.

Coming out of Thanksgiving Season, I am thankful for the grace that others have given me when I made mistakes, etc. especially my wife when I did not deserve forgiveness, but she was willing to forgive me and a forgiving process and reconciliation took place. A quote from Aesop, “The injuries we do and those we suffer are seldom weighed on the same scales”. To paraphrase, when someone does hurt us, we feel much more than we think we hurt them. I think that is where we are in the relationships here on the Board. Some of us have hurt another Board member and we don’t realize we hurt them and yet the other person being hurt is carrying that with them and maybe there is a grudge there. Getting back to a quote from Mr. DeHaas in his closing statement to the Board, my hope for the Board is that they resolve to concentrate their efforts with strategic initiatives. That’s what we need to do, work together and with each other instead of against each other. What I would like us to do between now and when we meet on December 16 is to evaluate yourself, self examination. What relationships on the Board are strained? Maybe you don’t think you hurt somebody. It may be who hurt me or hurt my feelings or insulted me. If I feel that way about a fellow Board member, I need to talk with that person on the phone or in person and let them know what I feel. We are all adults here and we need to start acting like adults and treat each other like adults. If we feel someone wronged us, we need to approach that person and try to correct the issue. I think we need to do some forgiving on this Board and before that can happen we all need to do some soul searching and see where our pains and hurts come from.

Meeting adjourned at 7:55 PM.

YORK SUBURBAN SCHOOL BOARD
PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING
DECEMBER 2, 2013
Following Re-organization Meeting

A G E N D A

Call to Order – Board President
Mr. Miller called meeting to order at 7:55 PM.
Board President’s Report
1. Review Roll Call Voting Procedure
  Mr. Miller reviewed the procedure that we implemented for roll call voting and asked for discussion on the procedure.
  
  A discussion continued. Points of the discussion included – an abstained vote would be stated following Ms. Mason’s statement; suggestion to allow a little time between statement and motion passed to permit any abstaining or negative vote.
  
  Mr. Miller concluded the discussion stating the Board will continue with this procedure for roll call voting.
Superintendent’s Report – Dr. Merkle
1. Cyclical Monitoring (Gifted and Special Education) Report – Natalie Hasenfuss
  Dr. Merkle introduced Natalie Hasenfuss, Director of Pupil Personnel, for a report on Cyclical Monitoring.
  
  Mrs. Hasenfuss provided information on the PDE monitoring for both gifted and special education this year. Results will be shared with the public.
  
  An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
  
  Dr. Merkle commented that Mrs. Hasenfuss was hired for this position in August. Kudos to her for this preparation and sharing the information with the Board.
2. District Goals Discussion. In light of the recent transition, the administration recommends revisions to the District Goals as outlined on the attached document.
  Dr. Merkle reviewed revisions to the District Goals. Board members shared two revisions for document.
  
  Mr. Miller stated with these revisions, the Board will approve the goals on December 16.
3. Budget Calendar Amendment. Our previously published budget calendar calls for a Revenue Report at this evening’s meeting. Due to the transition in leadership, the administration found it necessary to move the Revenue Report to the December 16 meeting.
  Dr. Merkle reported above information.
  
  An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
Business Office Report – Ms. Mason
No Report.
Committee Reports
1. Finance Committee – Mr. Miller
  1. Transportation Contract Extension. The administration recommends the approval of a three year contract extension with Durham School Services for transportation services. The extension results in a pricing increase of 1.75% for 2014-15 and a 2% increase for 2015-16 and 2016-17. The District currently is at a 2.5% price increase.
    Mr. Miller highlighted above and action will be taken December 16.
    
    A discussion continued. Points of the discussion included – the transportation bill just signed will affect diesel fuel costs, the District pays for fuel; the original contract includes the opportunity for the District to review maintenance and safety checks at any time.
    
    An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
2. Committee Minutes
  1. Communications Committee – November 4
  2. Finance Committee – October 3
  3. Nominating Committee – November 21
  4. Policy Review Committee – October 15, October 29, November 12
    Mr. Miller reported the committee meeting minutes are available.
    
    Mrs. Schroeder stated a correction is needed for the record on the Nominating Committee meeting minutes that she was a member of the committee rather than a Board member attending the meeting as noted in the minutes.
    
    A discussion continued. Point of discussion included – the FAQs being reviewed at the Communications Committee meeting are for the District and will eventually be posted on the website.
    
    An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
Upcoming Meeting Schedule
1. Special Board Meeting – December 9 – 7:30 PM
2. Regular Monthly Meeting – December 16 – 7:30 PM
  Mr. Miller reported above.
  
  A discussion continued. Points of the discussion included – process for December 9 meeting to interview board member candidates; questions will need to be developed; deadline for receiving candidate applications is end of day on December 4 and it was decided to post the candidate applications for Board members on the website under Confidential on December 6; on December 9, candidates will have time to make a two minute opening statement, the Board will then ask two to three questions to each candidate, followed by a one minute closing statement from each candidate; currently there are ten candidates; procedure for discussion with Board members following the interviews and prior to nomination(s) of Board member was discussed at length; nomination(s) for Board member will be taken from Board members, no second is required for nomination; voting will take place in the order that nomination(s) were received; five votes are necessary for a nomination of candidate to pass; a notary is authorized to swear in new Board member and this does not need to take place at a public meeting, if done other than public meeting it is required to affirm that swearing in took place by notary.
  
  Mr. Miller concluded the discussion by stating Board members should email their questions to him by Sunday and he will consult with Dr. Merkle and other Board members. Questions should be different than those on the candidate’s application. The Board will gather at 7:15 PM on December 9 in the High School cafeteria to review the process for the evening’s interviews. An orientation will be provided to the new Board member prior to December 16.
  
  An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
Comments and/or Questions from the Public
An opportunity was provided for public comment. There was none at this time.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 8:42 PM.

An Executive Session regarding a personnel matter was held immediately following the meeting.

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