BOARD CURRICULUM COMMITTEE

MEETING MINUTES

TUESDAY, APRIL 18, 2006

 

 

Members of the Board Curriculum Committee met on Tuesday, April 18, 2006, at 6:00 p.m. in the Dining Room at the Education Center. Present were: Curriculum Committee Members Anthony Villani, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, and Richard Agretto, director of special education; and Board Members Rosario Amato, Joseph Craig, Judith Dexter, Dr. Craig Haytmanek, William Heske, Charlene Koch, Loretta Leeson, Diane Rowe, and Margaret Williams. Also in attendance were: Dr. Joseph A. Lewis, superintendent of schools; Mia Fernandes, coordinator of literacy; Eric Smith, supervisor of science; George VanDoren, coordinator of English language arts; Frank Arbushites, coordinator of academic computing; Stanley J. Majewski, Jr., assistant to the superintendent for finance and administration; Thomas Washington, director of student services; Jeffrey Tucker, district solicitor; and representatives of the press.

 

COURTESY OF THE FLOOR TO VISITORS (15 minutes allowed)

Mrs. Leeson commented that people are remarking to her that they are requesting information at committee and/or board meetings and are not receiving answers to their questions.

 

1. Mr. Stephen Antalics noted that, with respect to his questions concerning how to reduce the number of dropouts, Dr. Lewis did not get back to him with this information. Dr. Lewis apologized and said he would look into it and get back to Mr. Antalics.

 

ILLICK’S MILL PROJECT UPDATE

Mr. Villani introduced Karen Dolan and Panther Feit who presented an update and a PowerPoint presentation to the board on the Illick’s Mill Project. She explained that the Illick’s Mill Project is a nonprofit organization made up of 20-25 Liberty High School juniors and seniors who are working to restore the Illick’s Mill building into an environmental education center. She also noted that she will be coming back to the board in the near future with a Memorandum of Understanding for a partnership with the Bethlehem Area School District.

 

The board thanked her for her part in this excellent project. Mrs. Leeson had a concern about the students receiving full English and history credits for working on the project. She did not see it as a basic requirement program and felt it should be considered an elective.

 

POSITIVE BEHAVIOR INCENTIVE SYSTEM (PBIS)

Mr. Villani introduced Joseph Rahs, principal of Fountain Hill Elementary School. Mr. Rahs explained to the board that PBIS is a joint partnership that began two and one-half years ago between the Bethlehem Area School District and the United Way. It is a systems approach to preventing and responding to classroom and school discipline problems. PBIS develops school-wide systems that support staff to teach and promote positive, appropriate behavior in all students. By reducing behavioral problems, PBIS creates and maintains a safe learning environment where teachers can teach and students can learn. He stressed the critical importance of teaching the appropriate behavior rather than just punishing inappropriate behavior. He explained that this program has been in place for one year at Fountain Hill Elementary School, Donegan Elementary School, and the Regional Academic Standards Academy. Next year Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, Freemansburg Elementary School, and the Career Academy will adopt the program.

 

ELEMENTARY READING TEXTBOOK ADOPTION UPDATE

Mia Fernandes, coordinator of literacy, and Shannon Miller, a teacher at Marvine Elementary School, described the components of the two reading/language arts series that the district is currently piloting. These reading/language arts series are Macmillan McGraw-Hill’s Treasures and Houghton Mifflin’s Reading ’06. Mrs. Fernandes noted that on May 17, 2006, pilot teachers will be voting on which series to adopt. Implementation of the adopted series is scheduled for the 2006-2007 school year. She distributed copies of an evaluation guide for textbook selection, a selection and adoption timeline, and a matrix outlining teachers, grades, and buildings where the reading/language arts series are being piloted.

 

CODE OF CONDUCT UPDATE

Dr. Lewis asked that this update be rescheduled to the next Board Curriculum Meeting.

 

OPEN FORUM

Mr. Craig suggested that if questions are asked by members of the public, committee chairpersons should note the questions and check within a week or two to see if they have been answered by the appropriate person. Mrs. Dexter suggested the district look into what other districts do in regard to this issue.

 

Mrs. Leeson asked if other members of the board saw the article in Time Magazine regarding the dropout rate. She stated that she would gladly provide copies to any board members who did not see the article.

 

Mrs. Leeson also asked if anyone read the article in the Express Times regarding the number of children in the Bethlehem Area School District who were exempted from taking the PSSA’s. Dr. Lewis noted that the Bethlehem Area School District has made its participation rate. Mr. Villani stated that he had not read the article but will check into the matter and report back to the board.

 

The meeting was adjourned at 7:50 p.m.

 

Minutes Prepared By:

 

Charlotte L. Zimmerman

Administrative Assistant to the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction