BETHLEHEM AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT
BOARD FACILITIES COMMITTEE
MEETING MINUTES
MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2006
Mr. Rosario Amato, chairman, called the meeting of the Board Facilities Committee to order at 6:15 p.m. on Monday, October 9, 2006, in the Dining Room at the Education Center. Present were School Board Members Charlene Koch, Joseph Craig, Diane Rowe, Margaret Williams, Dr. Craig Haytmanek, Loretta Leeson, Judith Dexter, William Heske, and Rosario Amato. Also present were Dr. Joseph A. Lewis, superintendent of schools, Thomas K. Washington, director of student services, Stanley J. Majewski Jr., assistant superintendent for finance and administration, Scott Gilliland, director of facilities and operations, Arif Fazil, district engineer (DÕHuy Engineering, Inc.), and representatives from the press.
The following items were discussed:
COURTESY OF THE FLOOR TO VISITORS Ð
Mr. Stephen Antalics, Jr., 737 Ridge Street, Bethlehem, PA 18015.
AGENDA ITEMS FOR THE OCTOBER 23,
2006, REGULAR BOARD
MEETING Ð
After discussion, the board committee unanimously agreed to bring the following agenda items to the October 23, 2006, Regular Board Meeting:
A. Authorization to Expend 2005 and 2007 Bond Funds Ð Bids Opened October 16, 2006 Ð Pool Ultraviolet Filtration System Ð Freedom High School Additions
B. Authorization to Expend 2001 Bond Funds Ð Bids Opened October 16, 2006 Ð Sanitary Line and Grease Interceptor Relocation Ð Donegan Elementary School
C. Pennsylvania Department of Education Self-Certification Approval Ð Fire Alarm System Ð East Hills Middle School
D. Authorization to Expend 2005 and 2007 Bond Funds Ð Environmental Services Ð New Broughal Middle School Construction Project
E. Quotations for the $4,000-$10,000 Cost Category
F. Act 34 Resolution Ð New Broughal Middle School Construction Project
Facilities Meeting Minutes
October 9, 2006
Page 2
Broughal Middle School
Mr. Fazil noted that the Act 34 Hearing date has been moved up early in December based on board comments. The hearing will be December 14, 2006, at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Broughal Middle School.
The bids for removal of masonry components from the existing Broughal Middle School will be received in November and reviewed with the board. This will give a better idea for the salvaging and relocation costs.
Mr. James Petrucci from J.G. Petrucci Company, Inc., has proposed that his lot adjacent to the Perkins Restaurant on the South Side along Brodhead Avenue could be used for construction staging for a fee of $250 a month. He would give us a two-year lease with the condition that the lease can be cancelled with a 180-day notice. The board authorized the administration to pursue this lease.
Mr. Fazil reported that the Broughal design phase is on schedule and construction will begin in June 2007.
Mr. Craig shared with Dr. Lewis that Lehigh UniversityÕs school newspaper suggested that with a new president on board there may be a possibility of swapping their adjacent parking lot for the Broughal Middle School.
Dr. Lewis indicated that the lots are very narrow and without closing Brodhead Avenue, the site was not very useful. He is also not aware of any changes in LehighÕs position. Dr. Lewis further noted his concern that there has been a substantial investment in the current plan.
Mr. Fazil also reported that in his discussions with Anthony Corrello, Lehigh UniversityÕs director of facilities, he has not mentioned anything of that nature.
Mr. Fazil also shared with the board that all summer capital improvement projects are completed, however, we are finalizing a few punch list items.
Facilities Meeting Minutes
October 9, 2006
Page 3
Mr. Craig asked Dr. Lewis and Mr. Fazil to comment on any construction problems affecting the students at Liberty or Freedom High School. Dr. Lewis said everything was going well, and there were no concerns to report.
Mr. Fazil also stated that James Hanna, Dr. Donaher, and Mr. Gilliland meet once a week, and there is nothing negative to report. Mr. Gilliland stated that the students have been phenomenal, and there have been few problems related to the construction.
OPEN FORUM Ð
Mrs. Leeson also asked Dr. Lewis to please try and obtain a manual for eSchool Plus training. Currently there is on-line training but a written manual would be beneficial for reference. Dr. Lewis will see that request is offered to Pentamation Enterprises Inc.
Mrs. Leeson also asked the board to consider an inservice on protocol at school board meetings, with a concentration on learning ÒRobertÕs RulesÓ and reviewing the code of conduct developed by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) that was adopted by the Bethlehem Area School District board.
Mr. Amato supported Mrs. LeesonÕs comments.
Mrs. Judy Dexter agreed with Mrs. LeesonÕs request. She also asked Dr. Lewis for an update on the portable classrooms at Rosemont.
Dr. Lewis advised that on October 3, 2006, the district applied to the City of BethlehemÕs Zoning Board to seek relief from the CityÕs directive to remove the portables by October 31, 2006. A hearing with the zoning board has been scheduled for Wednesday, October 25, 2006, to consider our appeal. Atty. James Broughal, the districtÕs counsel on this matter, has said that there is no prohibition from using them in the interim; however, they are not to be occupied with children. It is too premature to say how we would use them at this time. This item will be placed on the agenda of the superintendentÕs Cabinet Meeting for Tuesday, October 10, 2006. The district is asking for a one-year occupancy extension until the future of these units can be determined.
Facilities Meeting Minutes
October 9, 2006
Page 4
Mr. Craig shared his experience at a community college state meeting in Hershey. Donna Cooper, secretary for planning and policy for Governor Rendell, said Pennsylvania has more IEP students than any other state in the country. Community colleges spend a lot of time and remediation on these students due to poor early childhood programs throughout the state. All-day kindergarten should be looked at along with laptop computers which afford less advantaged students resources similar to their more advantaged peers.
Mr. Craig also referenced the ÒBoard Governance Standards/Code of ConductÓ policy the board adopted on December 5, 2005. Mr. Craig read some of the points of the 52-point policy regarding teamwork, devotion, harmony, respect, cooperation, voting on the facts, and then abiding by, and upholding the majority of the board. He stated that the board needs to entertain differing views of members; however once an issue has been voted upon and approved this decision reflects the will of the board. Behavior and attitudes need to be reflected upon as well.
All directors agreed to review the code of conduct that was adopted last year governing their public conduct.
Mrs. Dexter commented that she believes there is significant controversy over the effectiveness of laptops. She stated that they are utilized by Bethlehem students and their mathematics scores have gone down.
A discussion was conducted relative to the accuracy of committee meeting minutes. It was determined that word-for-word minutes were not necessary and that it was acceptable to keep them simple. It was also felt that the reading of minutes at the regular board meetings took up valuable time and extended the length of board meetings unnecessarily. The board agreed that they would like copies of the minutes from facilities, curriculum, finance and human resources meetings available for the public at the monthly board meetings. They will also be available, in their entirety, on the districtÕs Web site after board approval.
Minutes prepared by:
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Joanne Carraghan, Secretary to the Director of Facilities and Operations
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Scott T. Gilliland, Director of Facilities and Operations