| A.
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Call to Order and Roll Call
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The School Board of Santa Rosa County met in regular session at 9:00 a.m. with the following members present: Mrs. Diane Scott, Chairman, Mr. Hugh Winkles, Vice-Chairman, Mr. Scott Peden, Mrs. Jennifer Granse and Mrs. Diane Coleman. Also present was Timothy S. Wyrosdick, Superintendent of Schools and Secretary and Paul r. Green, Board Attorney. |
| | The Chairman called the meeting to order and Mr. Wyrosdick lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and in a moment of silence. |
| | The board approved the minutes of the School Board Meeting Minutes for January 23, 2014 and for February 11, 2014. |
| 1.
| Approval of January 23, 2014 School Board Meeting Minutes |
| 2.
| Approval of February 11, 2014 Special School Board Meeting Minutes |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Diane Coleman. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved the minutes of the School Board Meeting Minutes for January 23, 2014 and for February 11, 2014. |
| D.
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Oral Written Communications
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| 1.
| "Kids Tag Art" Program |
| | Mr. Stan Nichols, Santa Rosa County Tax Collector in coordination with the school district introduced the Kids Tag Art program. He explained that about 6 years ago Polk County began this program and it has provided some much needed funding for schools. Kids Tag Art is a school fundraising project that inspires fifth grade art students to design their own specialty plate art.
Students create unique designs, and for each tag you order, $8.00 goes to your school to help with the purchase of classroom art supplies for your child.
Mr. Nichols thanked the sponsors who have partnered with the county to bring this program to Santa Rosa County. Without them this program would not be possible. He also thanked Mr. Wyrosdick, the School System and the Santa Rosa Education Foundation for their vision.
Mr. Wyrosdick stated that we are a better school system because of all the support we get from our community. Mr. Nichols is excited about the possibilities and is looking forward to the implementation of the program. More information can be obtained from the Santa Rosa County Tax Collector's office online.
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| E.
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Recognitions Resolutions Proclamations
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| 1.
| American Cancer Society |
| | Ms. Barbara Hamamura and Shelly Nightingale, with the American Cancer Society presented the school board with a plaque in recognition of the support the schools have provided for their Relay for Life activities. The school district has raised $1,107,825.52 since 2002 to help in the fight against cancer.
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| G.
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Public Forum- (Request to address the School Board regarding an item not on the agenda)
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| | The chairman opened the floor for the public forum and asked if anyone wanted to speak about any items that may not be on the agenda.
Ashley Herbstreith came forward and stated that she was a substitute teacher in the district until she received a termination letter. She said she was unaware of any problems until she received the letter. After asking about the reasons, she was furnished with e-mails from 3 Principals with accusations that she claims are untrue. Mr. Wyrosdick stated that if she had any additional information, he would meet with her to discuss it. He explained the district did investigate the situation and Principals take these charges very seriously. When they feel that an individual is acting in a way that is inappropriate to students, we must take action.
Rachel Reyes came forward to address the district's corporal punishment policy. She gave Mr. Wyrosdick a copy of "Positive Discipline in the Classroom" for him to review. She said she was a parent and spoke to the board at the last meeting about her opposition to corporal punishment. She asked the board to stop the practice of corporal punishment because she felt the school board may be in violation of Florida Statute 1002.20(4)(c)(2). This statute states that a school board having a policy authorizing the use of corporal punishment as a form of discipline shall review its policy on corporal punishment once every 3 years during a district school board meeting held pursuant to s. 1001.372. If such a meeting is not held in accordance with this, the portion of the district school board's policy authorizing corporal punishment expires. Ms. Reyes stated that she has a subscription to the Press Gazette and could not find where a notice of the public meeting nor the taking of public testimony was announced for the June 27th, 2013 school board meeting where the Code of Student Conduct was approved. Therefore, she feels corporal punishment can not be legally used at this time in the district. She requests that the board take immediate action to discontinue the practice of corporal punishment.
Mr. James McNulty, Floridians Against Corporal Punishment in Public School reminded the board that he spoke at the last board meeting calling for a moratorium on the use of corporal punishment and he asked to have the issue included on the agenda but noticed it wasn't there. He said he had copies of public records to substantiate the incidents he reported at the previous meeting if the board wanted to see them. He related his story about wanting to become a teacher and found himself during his 2nd year of college and a student teacher in Okaloosa County in a situation where he was called by an Assistant Principal of an elementary school to witness a paddling.
He would not participate. After school, he was called into the office and told that if he ever wanted to teach or become an administrator, he would have to learn to paddle. He was in shock when the Principal told him if he was working as a teacher he would be fired. He decided to leave the teaching field.
Mr. McNulty called attention to an e-mail he received when he asked about the advertising of the public meeting where corporal punishment would be discussed and the response he received from Mr. David Gunter. He said there were dates included where the advertising was to take place, however when reviewing the Press Gazette, he could not find a single advertisement. He feels we are in violation of the law and continues to ask the school district to ban the use of corporal punishment. He also distributed a letter asking the board to place this issue on the school board agenda for it's next board meeting so it could be voted on by the school board members.
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| H.
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Approval of Agenda- Items may be pulled from the Administrative Agenda and placed under the respective Action Agenda category by request of the Board member/Superintendent
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| | Motion to Approve was moved by Scott Peden , Seconded by Diane Coleman. Motion Passed
by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved agenda items H. 1,2,3, and 4 as submitted.
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| a.
| Administrative Personnel Board Agenda |
| b.
| Leaves: Without Pay, Illness In Line Of Duty, Military Leave; Out-Of-State Temporary Duty Requests |
| c.
| Substitute Teachers and Ed Support Substitute List |
| d.
| Annual Fire and Life Safety Inspections |
| 2.
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Curriculum/Instruction Items
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| a.
| Student Reassignment/Transfer Requests |
| b.
| Suspensions - February 20, 2014 |
| a.
| Monthly Financial Statement, Budget Amendment #14/04 |
| b.
| Bills/Payroll for Dec. 2013 |
| 4.
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Administrative Operational Items
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| c.
| Religious Venue Request - PHS |
| I.
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Administrative/Operational Recommendations- Joey Harrell, Assistant Superintendent for Administrative Services
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| 1.
| Custodial Quarterly Report 022014 |
| | Mr. Sport came forward to present the quarterly Custodial update. He first said he wanted to say something about his staff. He complimented David Howell, Marie Lee, Ryne Jernigan, and Lonny Ennis, Area Managers for the great job they do.
Mr. Sport shared the quality control scores Southern received from the various schools and locations and was proud to say they were all 3's and 4's. He reviewed the previous quarters activities and pictures which included such items as: top scrubbing and waxing VCT floors (common areas such as cafeteria and hallways); hood vents cleaned at high schools; winter grounds clean up; and the nomination of Gail Watson, Milton High School as their Santa Rosa employee of the year. He recognized Michael Porter, Warehouse as their Employee of the Quarter. Mrs. Coleman said she appreciated Southern for the great job they do for us.
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| 2.
| DAG Architects Agenda Items |
| | The board reviewed the status of DAG Architects current construction projects. |
| 3.
| Pinder Martin Agenda Items |
| | The board reviewed the status of Pinder Martin current construction projects. |
| 4.
| Gulf Breeze High School-HVAC Renovation Bid Tabulation |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Scott Peden , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
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The board approved issuing the Gulf Breeze High - HVAC Renovation Phase I to A. E. New, Jr. Inc. as the lowest and best at $2,659,000. |
| 5.
| Direct Purchasing Change Orders |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Diane Coleman. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Jenny Granse. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | In response to a recent audit recommendation concerning expenditures surrounding the use of Fuel Tax Revenues, Mr. Harrell is requesting approval that the following 2013-14 Capital Outlay projects be recoded from Fund 392 to Fund 390:
East Milton Elementary (Turn Lane) $25,000; Holley Navarre Primary (Restripe Parking Lot) $5,000; Holley Navarre Interm. (Restripe Parking Lot) $5,000; Gulf Breeze High School (Restripe Parking Lot) $7,500; Jay High School (Gravel Athletic Parking Area) $30,000; Building Maintenance (County Wide School Facilities Paving) $50,000.
The recoding of these funds will help to insure appropriate use of these revenues. Future Capital Outlay Budgets will denote the use of Fuel Tax Revenues where appropriate.
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| 7.
| Lease Agreement with United Cerebal Palsy of NW Florida |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| J.
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Human Resource Recommendation- Lewis Lynn Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources
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| 1.
| Human Resource Action Agenda |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved the administrative appointment of Patricia Petrie as the Coordinator of Literacy, Instructional Services, effective April 1, 2014.
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| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved the employee disciplinary action as submitted. |
| | The list of Job Descriptions was tabled until a later meeting. |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Hugh Winkles , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approves rescinding the intent to terminate employee as submitted.
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| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | Mrs. Karen Retherford, Human Resource Services Manager came forward and shared with the board that the District Insurance Committee began looking at other opportunities when the board discontinued the Virgin Health Care program. A sub-committee of the Insurance Committee began meeting to evaluate the Florida Blue's Blue Rewards wellness program. Their program has five primary components: Rewards - incentives for achieving a specified number of points; Assessments - Bio-metric screening and PHA; Tools - on-line member resources; tracking - exercise, weight and blood pressure; Information - educational resources and telephonic coaching.
Florida Blue administers the program at no cost, funding for any rewards or incentives offered are the group's responsibility. The sub-committee developed program specifications for our group and the following summarizes their recommendations:
- Program Dates - April 1, 2014 - October 31, 2014
- Employees must accumulate 300 points from April 1, 2014 to October 31, 2014 to be eligible for the $20.00 per month wellness insurance premium credit in 2015.
- Completion of the on-line PHA is an eligibility requirement (valued at 70 points)
- Additional points may be earned by completing a variety of other activities including but not limited to:
- BMI within the normal range (bio-metric screening results)
- Cholesterol within the normal range (bio-metric screening results)
- Blood Pressure in the ideal range (bio-metric screening results)
- Non-tobacco user
- Using on-line tools such as the medical services cost estimator and pharmacy shopping tool
- Tracking exercise, weight and/or blood pressure
- Working with an on-line digital health assistant/telephonic coach to meet specific health goals
- Completing educational brain-shark presentations
For three consecutive years, we have provided employees with a $20.00 per month wellness insurance premium credit. In the past, employees have only been required to participate in the annual bio-metric screening and complete the Florida Blue on-line Personal Health Assessment (PHA) to qualify for the credit. In 2014 Florida Blue is providing $100,000 in wellness dollars and $50,000 in partnership plan dollars for a total of $150,000 that will be used to fund the wellness insurance premium credit. Last September, the School Board agreed to provide the remaining funding needed for 2014 (approximately $150,000).
To implement the Blue Rewards program effective April 1, 2014, we need a financial commitment from Florida Blue confirming they will provide a minimum total of $150,000 for the 2015 benefit plan year. We need a financial commitment from the School Board confirming they will provide the remaining funds needed (approximately $150,000). Karen has submitted our request to Florida Blue and is waiting on their response.
It was the consensus of the District Insurance Committee that Blue Rewards would provide a cost effective wellness program with a platform designed to continue promoting health and wellness with our employees.
The board approved the request for $150,000 to fund a portion of the 2015 wellness insurance premium credit and to implement the Blue Reward program effective April 1, 2014. |
| K.
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Curricular and Instructions Recommendation – Bill Emerson, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction
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| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved the students early termination of expulsions as recommended. |
| 2.
| Alternative Placements - February 20, 2014 |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Scott Peden , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| 3.
| Affiliation Agreement between Locklin Tech & University Hills Heath & Rehab |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| 4.
| NJROTC Contract Agreement - MHS, NHS, PHS |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| 5.
| High School Athletic Schedules - Spring 2014 |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| 6.
| CALENDAR 2014-15, 2015-16 DRAFT |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Scott Peden , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | Mr. Hinote, Director of High School shared with the board that the calendar committee consists of 10 members, from all three levels, including Administrators, Teachers and Ed. Support and a member of the district staff because of their knowledge of testing dates. He mentioned this is a tough job, as all have their own opinions, but they put a lot of thought and input into this and end up coming together to develop and present the 2014-15 and 2015-16 school year calendars for the board's approval. Mr. Hinote called the board's attention to one change that needs to be made on the 2015-16 Calendar. Under Holidays, July 4th is actually a Saturday, so employees will really be taking July 3rd off (Friday) in observance of the holiday. He will have the date changed to the 3rd prior to publishing the calendars.
Dr. Scott expressed her appreciation to the calendar committee for putting these calendars together for us and providing make up days when and if we need them.
Mr. Wyrosdick shared with the board that our staff is currently working on how we might add additional instructional minutes to each day beginning next year. If we can schedule in 6 additional minutes of instruction per day, it will add up to 3 days additional instructional time per school year. He explained that there really isn't forgiveness when it comes to children and teachers making up missed days. If you have the minimum instructional time build in to your calendar, you can get relief from making up missed days, but if you don't have the instructional time in, there isn't anything that can be done except go to school. Dr. Scott asked if that is what the difference was between Escambia County not making up their missed days due to the ice storm and Santa Rosa using their make up days, and he confirmed that it was.
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| | Motion to Approve was moved by Jenny Granse , Seconded by Scott Peden. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| 8.
| Early Head Start/Head Start Monthly Report for January 2014-Review Only |
| | The board reviewed the January, 2014 Early Head Start/Head Start Monthly Report.
Dr. Bonner shared with the board members that we had an Early Head Start/Head Start audit team here on February 10th and they told her they were impressed with the attendance we had. She thanked everyone who participated. She believes we will receive a good review. They have received some recommendations from them and plans to review them with Mr. Wyrosdick tomorrow. She expects to get the full audit report in a couple of weeks. Mr. Wyrosdick mentioned how much he appreciates what the staff does and he heard there might be a possibility some of their funds might be restored from the sequestration cuts. |
| L.
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Financial Recommendations – Susan McCole, Assistant Superintendent for Administrative Services
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| 1.
| Increase in Travel Cap |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Hugh Winkles , Seconded by Jenny Granse. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved the travel cap increase requested by Kenny McCay, Coordinator of Literacy for an ESOL teacher who supports the needs of English language Learners at various school sites during the 2013-14 school year. |
| M.
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Items from Board Members
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| 1.
| Florida School Board Association Dues 2014-15 |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Scott Peden , Seconded by Jenny Granse. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board approved paying the 2014-15 Florida School Board Association Annual Dues in the amount of $18,042.00. |
| 2.
| 2013-14 Salaries for School Board Members |
| | Motion to Approve was moved by Diane Coleman , Seconded by Hugh Winkles. Motion Passed by a vote of 5-0. |
| | The board received the annual salary calculation for all constitutional officers per s. 145.19 F.S. and 1001.395, F. S. The calculated 2013-14 salary for all constitutional officers, including school board members, increased and in accordance with Article II, Section 5(c) of the Florida Constitution would automatically go into effect as a matter of state law. However, 1001.395(2), F. S. authorizes school board members to reduce their statutorily calculated salary on a voluntary basis.
Mr. Winkles mentioned that if the board were to take the statutorily calculated salary as presented, they would get a larger raise than our teachers got this year, therefore he felt it would be appropriate to keep the school board salaries at their current rate and not take any increase.
The board voted to keep their salary at the current rate.
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| N.
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Items from Board Attorney
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| O.
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Items from Superintendent
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| | Mr. Wyrosdick responding to an earlier presentation under the public forum, wanted to share with everyone that we notice the public hearing on our Code of Student Conduct each year. He stated he could tell Mr. McNulty was passionate about the subject of Corporal Punishment and asked him to speak with him at the end of the meeting.
Mr. Wyrosdick asked Charlin Knight, Director of Workforce Education to come forward and give the board a quick update on the CAPE dollars we received. She told the board we received $370,000 in bonus FTE monies because of the Industry Certification courses and exams we are providing students. These students are career ready when they graduate. She also explained that legislation allows bonuses for the teachers who provide these courses. 23 of our teachers will be receiving a bonus in March. The remainder of the money will be spent on software and supplies to upgrade the programs.
The Superintendent mentioned that due to the cold weather we have had lately, our energy costs have been pretty high. We may have to bring a request for a budget amendment back to the board at a later date. |
| | There being no further business the meeting was adjourned.
DONE AND ORDERED IN LEGAL SESSION by the School Board of Santa Rosa County this 20th day of February, 2014.
SCHOOL BOARD OF
SANTA ROSA COUNTY
________________________________
Chairman
ATTEST:
_______________________________________
Superintendent and Secretary |
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