The HUUSD School Board met in person (with an option for remote participation) last Wednesday, October 26, 2022.
The meeting began with public comment. Peter Plagge of Waterbury encouraged the Board to continue to be vigilant regarding COVID in our schools.
During the highlights section, the Board learned about two recent visits by Senators Leahy and Sanders. Senator Leahy visited Crossett Brook Middle School to experience the farm to school program, and Senator Sanders and Ambassador Hautala from Finland visited HUHS for a town hall meeting. Students thoroughly enjoyed both visits.
Two reports were offered to the Board:
- Superintendent: Mike fielded questions regarding the recent COVID-19 outbreak at the high school and about the reporting process for gathering data on COVID case counts.
- Director of Finance: Lisa took questions regarding her quarterly financial report for Q1, which generally looks to be on track, as well as her proposed FY2024 budget timeline and considerations.
Topics for discussion were:
- Superintendent Goals: Mike provided a slide presentation covering his summer 2022 survey results and the strengths and needs indicated by the responses. Based on this and his observations so far this year, he suggested that the focus areas for goals should include academic success and school climate improvement, budget development, community relations, and facilities. Discussion ensued, and feedback provided included an explicit focus on equity, the clarification of how goals will be defined, and the addition of milestones to aid in evaluation. The Board will review updated goals at the next Board meeting.
- Staff Appreciation: It was agreed that food will be provided for staff and that Kristen and Kelley will coordinate this.
- Budget Overview PD: The VSBA budget video was discussed and other resources mentioned.
- Waitsfield Elementary Kitchen: Ray and Kaiya provided a history of Waitsfield’s food service and an overview of the benefits of upgrading it to a functional commercial kitchen. Board members asked questions and discussed their thoughts. Further action to approve the funds for the design and concept work will take place at the next meeting.
In action items, the Board:
- Passed a motion to appoint Jacob Pitman to the open Waterbury seat until March 7, 2023, with an AOE waiver due to his coaching position within the district.
- Approved a motion to adopt Policy C6 and Policy F24.
- Approved a motion to appoint Board members Victoria and Ashley to the negotiation team for support staff contracts.
- Approved a motion to place a mascot review on a future agenda.
- Approved a motion to place a discussion item on a near future agenda regarding oversight and policy related to the mitigation of respiratory and airborne illnesses including COVID.
- Approved a motion to finalize the Nurse Leader job description.
As always, the Board welcomes feedback from our community. One of the easiest ways to share your thoughts is to send an email to [email protected], which will go to every Board member. There is also time at every Board meeting for public comment. Alternately, reach out to one of your neighbors who is on the Board and share your thoughts in a personal email or phone call (see a list of Board members and contact information at https://tinyurl.com/523wtrnj).
The Board’s next regular meeting will be Wednesday, November 9, at 6:00 PM. Community members may attend in person in the Harwood library or remotely via zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/386460007#success), or watch it broadcast live on Youtube (http://tinyurl.com/huwebapp-youtube-live). Agendas and other related documents are available at huusd.org.