BOARD CURRICULUM COMMITTEE
MINUTES
Monday, January 6, 2003
Members of the Board Curriculum Committee met on Monday, January 6, 2003, at 7:08 p.m. in the Superintendent's Conference Room A of the Education Center. Present were Curriculum Committee Members, William Nelson, Monty Perfetti, and Richard Agretto and Board Members, Loretta Leeson, Craig Haytmanek, William Heske, Charlene Koch, Margaret Williams, Rosario Amato, Julie Venanzi and Joe Craig. Also in attendance was Superintendent Joseph A. Lewis.
Joe Craig commented on the newspaper article in the Morning Call reporting that several of Bethlehem's schools are at risk of not meeting the National standards. Dr. Lewis agreed with Mr. Craig's comments and told those present that he made a telephone call to the editorial supervisor at the morning call and will be meeting with him the following day.
Margaret Williams asked about the staffing process for school nurses. Nurses are currently assigned to cover multiple buildings. The staffing process will be reviewed by Dr. Nelson in the spring.
Mrs. Williams also asked about the possibility of assigning a district liaison person for the Japanese Exchange Program with the City of Bethlehem. Monty Perfetti recommended Liberty High School Principal, Bill Burkhardt.
Mrs. Leeson commented that she was pleased to hear that the Family Centers received the Magna Awards. She asked if the school libraries are available to students waiting to ride the activity buses home. Dr. Lewis said he thought they were, and he will check with the schools to be sure.
Dr. Lewis also noted that he is waiting to receive information about alternatives for the driver's education program from Ed Gallagher.
Marilee Ostman began her presentation by giving an overview of the history of the S.P.A.R.K. program. She explained that a program survey was developed to aid the data collection process for this report. After giving a description of the ÒtypicalÓ S.P.A.R.K. child, she noted that 64% of the 613 students completing the program, are still enrolled in the Bethlehem Area School District. She reviewed the performance of these students by grade level. The majority of the children are ÒnearlyÓ, ÒatÓ, or ÒexceedingÓ standards.
Mrs. Ostman credits the success of the program to the use of a consistent set of interventions to maximize a child's learning potential. The program also maintains regular attendance as a priority, as well as parental involvement. Mr. Heske noted that younger siblings also benefit from a parent's involvement in the program.
In response to a question from Julie Venanzi, it was noted that less than ten children in ten years were found to be not ready to enter Kindergarten after attending the S.P.A.R.K. program.
Craig Haytmanek was told that one-third of the number of children waiting to enter kindergarten are in need of early intervention. Between S.P.A.R.K. and Head Start, we are only meeting the needs of two-thirds of these children. The program currently has a full class wait list.
Dr. Lewis commented that he has asked Dr. Nelson to research and report on early intervention strategies. He noted that the S.P.A.R.K. program has proven to be very successful and he would like to see it expanded in the future.
Mr. Perfetti told those present that Arif Fazil and Jack Wittenberger will be notifying the neighborhood residents living in the Northeast Middle School area about the process and timelines involved in the plans for building the new middle school.
The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m.
Minutes Prepared By: _____________________________________
Lynda Ruth, Confidential Secretary