Minutes of August 7, 2025

MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING OF August 7, 2025

Current Board Members- 

        North Berwick-  Lauren Janousek, Kate Whalen, Joshua Tabor

                           Berwick- Alison Herlihy, Marissa Tasker, Peg Wheeler

                           Lebanon- Nancy Sewell, Jeridene Basko, Melissa Cyr 

(For a full account of this meeting please review the video here…Link you can choose to view the transcript in progress by clicking CC for subtitles.)

Executive Session

Executive Session Pursuant to 1M.R.S.A. §405(6)(B) Readmission of a Student 

Mr. Tabor  made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to go into executive session pursuant to Executive Session 1 MRSA 405§(6)(B) Readmission of a Student. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. In at 6:08 pm. Out at 6:32 pm. 

Mr. Tabor  made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to reinstate the student under consideration. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

Executive Session Pursuant to 1M.R.S.A. §405(6)(B) Readmission of a Student 

Mr Tabor made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to go into executive session pursuant to Executive Session 1 MRSA 405§(6)(B) Readmission of a Student. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. In at 6:40 pm. Out at 7:13 pm. 

Mr. Tabor  made the motion and it was seconded by Ms.Wheeler to reinstate the student under consideration. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

A meeting of the Board of Directors was held in person on August 7, 2025 at 7:00 pm with all members attending except Ms. Cyr who was remote. 

There were 4  members of the public present. 

Pledge of Allegiance

Ms. Wheeler read the public input statement. 

Public Input: None at this time.

Minutes: 

Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to accept the minutes of  June 5, 2025 as amended. All members voted in favor and the motion was passed. 

Ms. Janousek  made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to accept the minutes of  June 11, 2025 as amended. She then withdrew her motion.  Mr. Tabor made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to table the minutes of June 11th until the Central Office  compensation package can be discussed in executive session pursuant to 1 MRSA 4056B (employee compensation). All members voted in favor except Ms. Janousek and the motion passed.  

Ms. Wheeler  made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek as amended to accept the minutes of  July 3, 2025. All members voted in favor except Ms. Stanton, Ms. Herlihy, Ms. Tasker and Ms. Cyr who abstained and the motion was passed. 

Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler  to accept the minutes of  July 17, 2025. All members voted in favor and the motion was passed. 

Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler  to accept the minutes of  July 24, 2025. All members voted in favor except Ms. Herlihy and Mr. Tabor who abstained and the motion was passed. 

NWEA Data Presentation

Dr. Shannon Swiger shared an overview of the district NWEA data.

Local Delegate to MSBA Annual Delegate Assembly

The Board Chair asked for a volunteer to be the annual delegate to the MSBA Assembly.  There is a meeting on September 11th via ZOOM.  There is also a meeting in October for the state level agenda. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the nomination of Ms. Herlihy as the annual delegate for the MSBA Assembly. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

Employment:

New Hire:

Jennifer Lavoie- ELKS Special Education Teacher and has a degree from Holy Names University, Ms. Herlihy made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to approve Ms. Lavoie.  All members voted in favor and the motion passed.  

Forrest Knight- NHS Art Teacher and has a degree from the  New York University. Ms.Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to approve Mr. Knight.  All members voted in favor and the motion passed.  

Abigayle Levine- Hanson School Kindergarten Teacher and has a degree from St. Joseph’s College. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to approve Ms. Levine.  All members voted in favor and the motion passed.  

Angelina St. Paul- 7th grade Math Teacher at NMS/NHS.  Ms. Herlihy made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to approve Ms. St. Paul. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

Resignation: 

Ms. Josie Chadbourne is resigning from the position of MHA Director. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Herlihy to accept the resignation of Ms. Josie Chadbourne with regrets. All members voted in favor and best wishes and the motion passed. 

The Superintendent also noted that with the resignation of Ms. Chadbourne, the position at MHA was going to be revamped towards a Principal Educator which is 50/50 teacher/principal.  

Superintendent Update:

A few updates:  Tuesday and Wednesday of this week we held our 2 day Administrative Meeting. We covered York County Emergency Management System regarding safety and emergency planning, Stop the Bleed, teacher evaluation with Kim Marshall, Comprehensive Needs Assessment, and Nuts and Bolts. 

The multi-age 1st/2nd grade in North Berwick is no longer going to be utilized  and we added a second grade teacher due to increased enrollment. 

Update on the bus routes. There are many factors that impact the bus routes and it will take some time to firm them up as we move through the school year.  Patience and positive attitude will be appreciated as we work to resolve the route issues that inevitably arise each year during the first few weeks of school. We are down several drivers due to medical issues but we also have several new drivers in training to take over routes.  

Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms Wheeler  to add Others to the agenda. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

Other: 

Ms. Herlihy noted that she talked with a parent who recently moved to the district and was able to have her child join the Pre-K program and it has offered her some real relief economically. 

Mr. Tabor noted that he has been corresponding with Ms. Whalen via email and he is sending out the emails to the full board so they can be aware of the communication. 

Ms. Cyr noted the passing of Mr. Dave Sprague who had been with the district for over 34 years. He was a well known and appreciated teacher in our district and we share condolences with the family. There will be a memorial service in September. His spouse, Ms. Jennifer Sprague, is a teacher in our district at the North Berwick Elementary School. 

Public Input:

None at this time. 

Adjournment: 

Ms. Janousek  made a motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to adjourn the meeting. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. 

Adjourned at 8:52  pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Audra Beauvais