MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING OF February 2, 2023
Current Board Members-
North Berwick- Lauren Janousek, Kate Whalen, Lynn Manley
Berwick- Travis Doiron, Elva Lovejoy, Denise Mallett
Lebanon- Victoria Travers, Stephanie Hagenbuch, Nancy Neubert
Student Representative- Echo Balistreri
A meeting of the Board of Directors was held in person in North Berwick, Maine on February 2, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. with all members attending except Ms. Mallett, Mr. Doiron and Ms. Neubert. There were 2 in the audience.
The vice chair shared the public input statement.
Public Input: None
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Lovejoy to approve the minutes of January 19, 2023. All members voted in favor except Ms. Manly who abstained and the motion passed.
Student Report: Ms. Echo Balistreri, student board representative, shared with the board the student report:
The National Honors Society is preparing to remove the tree from the courtyard, likely during February break.
Student council is trying to plan a spirit week for this coming week.
Students have been attending sports games/meets, showing support for their peers.
The Spanish Honors Society had a field trip to watch a production today, and Project Search had a session at UNH yesterday evening regarding teen mental health and resilience.
Erin Dickson, District Health Coordinator, shared the 2019 MIYHS data with the board. She shared the following presentation and answered questions throughout the presentation. 2021 MIYHS Data
Snow Day update… we have utilized 4 snow days thus far and we are seeking a waiver for one of the days due to power issues. We will follow up with the board on how that transpires.
Brief update on the Strategic Planning meeting that occurred on January 28th. The themes that arose out of our conversations on Saturday were in the areas of Safety (both the physical facility safety measures that have been highlighted across the country as well as social/emotional and mental well being), Communication (across all areas to improve community buy in, etc), Community Engagement (communication is a part of that but this is a focus on the whole shebang... getting our community to become our partners), Quality Resources (Being able to hire and compensate and keep excellent staff in ALL areas of the system as well as provide students and family with a multitude of resources to support their needs) and Pathways to Success/Achievement (Our educational philosophy and goals for students). We will be defining these more clearly and will probably be morphing things along the way.
The superintendent then shared a second reading of policy BBABB, Student Representatives to the Board. There was a draft policy reviewed and discussed. Ms. Travers shared a concern regarding the interpretation of the student vote in terms of any outside perspectives of the student and the meaning of the vote. She shared concerns about those who are not understanding the role of the student rep and whether they would approach the student rep outside of meetings. The board discussed this concern and determined that we would be looking at other district’s policies and how they handle any concerns.
Employment Update:
The Superintendent shared the nomination of Amanda Foote for the Life Skills position in Lebanon. Ms. Hagenbuch made a motion and it was seconded by Ms. Lovejoy to approve the nomination of Amanda Foote as a Life Skills Teacher for the school year. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Other Business:
Question about the timing of the May district budget meeting date. Ms. Janousek noted that it is prior to a holiday weekend. She noted that the attendance might be better on a different night. We will follow up with our finance folks and determine the necessary dates. More to follow.
Ms. Lovejoy made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to go into executive session pursuant to 1M.R.S.A. §405(6)(A) Evaluation of Employee. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. In at 8:12 pm. Out at 8:34 pm
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Lovejoy to adjourn the meeting. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Adjourned at 7:54 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Audra Beauvais