Committee/ Council Observed: Kent City School Board

Date of Meeting: 3/21/2023

Format: Virtual

Meeting Summary:

The meeting began promptly at 6:00 PM with roll call and the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

• Board members, the superintendent, department heads & staff were introduced by Tom Larkin, assistant superintendent.
• Carl Sibinski representing Greenheart Exchange was introduced to explain the program. This program provides the opportunity for students from various countries to attend school locally in the United States. American students benefit in this exchange as well by studying in other host countries. Mr. Sibinski referred to this as a form of “soft diplomacy“. There are staff members from Greenheart available to deal with any problems or issues that may arise.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Voted on and approved.

SUPERINTENDENT’S UPDATE

• Former board member, Ryan Ferrara, was presented with the framed collage of all the various construction projects that have been undertaken in the district over the last couple of years. He gave credit to the administration & staff for their support for all these projects.
• Louise Feciuch, Family and Community Engagement Coordinator was also present to explain the work this group has been doing. Lunch and Learn for Families has been successful in getting families involved in their child’s education and has proved a great way to get parental feedback. It can be attended in person or virtually making it more accessible to working parents or those who would otherwise need childcare in order to attend. Fair housing is one of the pertinent topics being discussed as to how to support families in this area. The program is described as a celebration of learning. Neighborhood Bridges and Kent State are also partnering with the program. Let’s Grow Together, a program that creates gardens at the various schools in the district is hoping to expand to include all the elementary campuses. This has proved to be a great learning opportunity for the students.
• Presently, Davey Elementary is the only Purple Star school, meaning that it has a program to support students whose parents are deployed. It is hoped to include all schools in the district in the future.

FINANCIAL REPORT

• Debby Krutz gave a detailed report on the financial status of the district. Revenue from real estate taxes and personal property taxes has been received. These funds appear to be down a little from last year. The Bond Retirement fund of $575,000 also appears to be slightly down as well. Interest on investments continues to climb. Star Ohio was showing a rate of 4.76% in February and is presently at 4.90%.
• Voted on and approved.

RESOLUTION TO APPROVE BILLS
Voted on and approved.

RESIGNATIONS AND RETIREMENTS

• Some resignations, retirements, and leaves of absence were received. No substitutes were received.
• Voted on and approved.

OSBA POLICIES
New instructional materials are being considered for middle school and high school. This is referring to new Health books which will be reviewed and considered for approval next month.

RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT TAX RATES
Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER RESOLUTION REGARDING OHIO SCHOOL BOARDS

• Presently there is ongoing litigation regarding notification of school board meetings in Ohio.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER SUPPLEMENTAL CONTRACTS

• Justin Gates made a request for two additional days of audiology services.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER CONTRACT WITH CHILDREN’S ADVANTAGE

• This is an annual contract renewal for 17.9 hours per week.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER QUOTES FOR E RATE CATEGORY 2
This proposal will have follow-up next month for approval.

CONSIDER WORK SITE AGREEMENT WITH PORTAGE COUNTY JOBS AND FAMILY SERVICES
This program will allow students to be employed in the summer working to clean the various buildings in the district.

CONSIDER PURCHASE OF FURNITURE FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES

• The high school media center / library is in need of new furniture and carpeting at a cost of $52,000.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER RESOLUTION FOR TERMINATION

• This was considered during the closed executive session at February’s board meeting.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER RESOLUTION FOR CHANGE ORDERS

• There are no change orders at this time.
• Governor Mike DeWine’s office is offering a grant that must be used between 2023-2026. The hope is that Roosevelt could be the recipient of this money in order to expand the existing CTE Manufacturing program. Presently the program is capped at 18 students and benefits students from the 6-district compact. The new structure, including a lab, would expand into the back parking lot. One stipulation to receiving the grant is that the district must be “shovel ready”. In other words, they must have a construction company in place. Fortunately Kent has already contacted Shook Construction to continue as the contractor if Kent is awarded the grant.
• Voted on and approved

CONSIDER THE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT WITH KEA

• A three-year contract agreement was reached with the district’s teachers. Superintendent George Joseph praised the teachers for their hard work in reaching this agreement.
• Voted on and approved.

CONSIDER OUT OF STATE AND OVERNIGHT FIELD TRIPS
No requests have been received.

CONSIDER DONATIONS

• 16 donations totaling $4,337.31 has been received.
• Voted on and approved.

ADJOURN
Voted on and approved.

Which members of the board/council were present: All present - Brian Boykin, Colin Boyle, Pamela Ferguson, Tiera Moore & Rebekah Wright-Kulis

Was there a public notice of the meeting that included the time and place of meeting: Yes

Was an agenda of the meeting or handouts available to visitors: Yes

Are minutes from previous meetings posted/available: Yes

Name of Observer: Mary Myers