MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ MEETING OF June 6, 2024
Current Board Members-
North Berwick- Lauren Janousek, Kate Whalen, Joshua Tabor
Berwick- Travis Doiron, Elva Lovejoy, Peg Wheeler
Lebanon- Victoria Travers, Jeridene Basko, Nancy Neubert
A meeting of the Board of Directors was held in person in North Berwick, Maine on June 6, 2024 at 7:05 pm with all members attending in person except Ms. Lovejoy and Ms. Basko. There were approximately 14 in the audience.
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Mr. Doiron to have Ms. Whalen read the public input statement in lieu of the Vice Chair today. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Public Input:
Ms. Whalen of Lebanon read the public input statement.
Ms. Basko entered the meeting at 7:08 pm.
Celebrations:
Maine Middle School Science and Engineering Fair. Mr. Michael Archambault, principal of Noble Middle School, presented Austin Heiser, second place winter in the physical science category and who also earned a special award for Civil and Environmental Engineering which was sponsored by the University of Maine. Austin spoke to the board and thanked the board for the opportunity to speak about his Science Fair project: how temperature affects thermoelectric generators.
Field Days are happening throughout the K-5 realm this week. It is also Senior Week with many milestone events: Senior Ball, Red Carpet Week, Graduation/marching practice.
Kevin Loranger, Fifth grade teacher in Lebanon was named the Crumble Cookie Teacher of the Year, from Maine. 100 teachers nominated in the state of Maine and over 60,000 across the nation. Very special tribute to Kevin.
Audit RKO:
Jennifer Conners of Runyon Kersteen Ouellette gave an overview of the district financial audit. Ms. Conners noted that this is a very clean audit. No Material weaknesses and no significant deficiencies. The presentation (insert the audit document here) was thorough and gave strong kudos to the business office staff for being thorough, professional and so skilled in keeping our documentation clear and precise. Ms. Denise Van Campen, Business Manager, pointed out the incredible efforts of the staff in maintaining the district's meticulous compliance to the financial rules and regulations. Ms. Connors took questions from the board in regard to fund balance and other budgetary questions. The board thanked Ms. Connors and Ms. VanCampen and her staff for a job well done.
Budget Update:
The Superintendent shared the proposed dates for upcoming meetings. June 11th is the district budget referendum. June 13th we will meet regardless of if the budget passes or not. If the budget passes, we will be signing the appropriate paperwork. If the budget does not pass we will be meeting on June 20th for a Budget work session and on June 27th we will call the meeting for the signing of the new Warrant Articles. July 11th we would have a budget hearing and the budget would go back before the voters on August 6th.
If the budget does not pass, we move ahead with the proposed budget until such time that a new budget is voted upon and passed.
Minutes:
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms Wheeler to approve the minutes of May 23, 2024 meeting as amended. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to approve the minutes of May 30, 2024 meeting as amended. All members voted in favor except Mr. Doiron and Ms. Whalen who abstained and the motion passed.
Superintendent Summer Hire (Teachers) Effective June 14, 2024-August 28, 2024:
Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to allow the superintendent to hire staff without board approval for the summer (June 14 through August 28, 2023). All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Employment:
LOA: 2024-2025
Kelsey Thompson, Grade 3 Teacher at Vivian E. Hussey School. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve a leave of absence for Ms. Thompson. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
November 2024-June 2025
Jayme Frazier, Grade 6/7 Choral Teacher at Middle School. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve a leave of absence for Ms. Frazier. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
New Hire:
Shea Kelly, Grade 3 Vivian E. Hussey School. Ms. Kelly recently graduated with her Master’s degree in Education from Lesley University in May 2024. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the employment of Ms. Kelly. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Julianna Perrella, Grade 3 Vivian E. Hussey School. Ms. Perrella recently graduated with her Bachelor’s degree in Education from University of New Hampshire in May 2024. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the employment of Ms. Perrella. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Adrienne Smith, Grade 3 Vivian E. Hussey School. Ms. Smith has her Master’s degree in Art Education from University of Alabama. Ms. Smith has been teaching at a Department of Defense School in Japan. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the employment of Ms. Smith. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Lauren Nudi, Grade 4 Lebanon Elementary School. Ms. Nudi has a Bachelor of Arts from Bates College. Ms. Nudi has been teaching at a Charter School in Boston. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the employment of Ms. Nudi. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Resignations:
Caryn Smith, Art Teacher at North Berwick Elementary School. Ms. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms Wheeler to approve the resignation of Ms. Smith. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Alicia Reynolds, Grade 2 Vivian E Hussey School. Ms. Wheeler made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Janousek to approve the resignation of Ms.Reynolds. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Ryan Peters, Educational Technician Mary Hurd Academy. No motion needed.
Nicole Herron, Educational Technician Eric Knowlton School. No motion needed.
Superintendent Update:
The superintendent shared a concern voiced by Mr. Tabor regarding the student protest at NMS. He shared his concerns regarding students leaving the classrooms and what type of consequences were given. He discussed his concerns about the disruption of the school due to situations like this and wanted to discuss appropriate measures/consequences. There was concern brought up regarding what conversations were happening in the classrooms and what our staff discussions might have taken place. It was brought forward that there are concerns about what is going to be impacting us coming forward with the elections in November and that we should have a game plan on how we will help our students and our staff navigate the months and days ahead.
We also discussed consistency regarding consequences. We have a Code of Conduct and we will be reviewing it in the fall to address any inconsistencies that we may see. The reality is that there are a variety of ways to handle situations so we want to be providing a “band” of consequences. More to come on this after the committee meets in the fall.
Date for summer workshop…. Looking at July 11th but need confirmation of that date.
Public Input:
Mr. Joe Forte, of North Berwick, spoke regarding the walk out at the NMS. He shared with the board that the students seemed to understand the gravity of the situation and that Noble Middle School and the district handled it very well.
Mr. Shawn Works, of NB shared his thoughts on the posting of the dates of the board meetings and noted that it would be appreciated if the information is kept as up to date as possible and with a little more clarity.
Ms. Chelsea Hewitt of NB shared her thoughts on the walk out at NMS. She shared that there was a designated time on the second day and that she supported her student.
Executive Session:
Mr. Janousek made the motion and it was seconded by Ms. Wheeler to go into executive session pursuant to 1M.R.S.A. §405(6)(A) Evaluation of Employees. All members voted in favor and the motion passed. In at 8:29 pm. Out at 8:52 pm.
Adjournment:
Mr. Doiron made the motion and it was seconded by Mr. Tabor to adjourn the meeting. All members voted in favor and the motion passed.
Adjourned at 8:55 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Audra Beauvais