Guilford County Board of Education
Board Meeting
October 10, 2006

GUILFORD COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION
REGULAR MEETING
GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA

The Guilford County Board of Education met in a regular meeting on Thursday, September 28, 2006, at 712 North Eugene Street, Greensboro, North Carolina. The following board members were present: Walter Childs, Alan Duncan, Darlene Garrett, Deena Hayes, Susan Mendenhall, Amos Quick, Nancy Routh and Marti Sykes. Board members Kris Cooke, Dot Kearns, and Anita Sharpe were absent. Also present were Superintendent Terry Grier and Attorney Jill Wilson.

Call to Order
Chairman Alan Duncan called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance and Moment of Silence
Board member Darlene Garrett led the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence.

Public Comments
Chairman Alan Duncan called on members of the public who requested an opportunity to address the board.

John Glenn, 7813 Spencer Brook Drive, Summerfield, NC 27358
Mary Burritt, 2016 Fleming Road, Greensboro, NC 27410
C. C. Lamberth, 5206 Northland Court, McLeansville, NC 27301
Mark Jewell, 210 E. Lindell Road, Greensboro, NC 27403
Tijuana Hayes, 6 Pyruss Court, Greensboro, NC 27401
Ruth Spaulding, 3 Yard Arm Court, Greensboro, NC 27455
Lakshmi Iyer, 804 Bass Landing Place, Greensboro, NC 27455
Gary Rhymer, 1112 Monticello Street, Greensboro, NC 27410
Ava Hoffer, 2401 Lafayette Avenue, Greensboro, NC 27408
Mary Moon, 5612 Greenlee Road, Greensboro, NC 27410
Joe Stafford, 4604 Forest Village Drive, Greensboro, NC 27406

Approval of Agenda
Chairman Alan Duncan asked board members to review the meeting agenda and called for a motion to approve or amend it. Chairman Duncan, at the request of board members, requested that Staff Reports Agenda Item D, “Consideration for Naming of the Grimsley High School Stadium Concession Stand,” be moved under Staff Reports as Item A. Motion was made by Marti Sykes, seconded by Susan Mendenhall, to approve the agenda as amended. The motion passed upon unanimous voice vote.

Consent Agenda

Superintendent Grier presented the following Consent Agenda items:

A.   Personnel Action Reports

The consent agenda included personnel actions as noted in the monthly Personnel Action Report requiring board approval.

B. First Reading – Policy BF, Responding to Complaints

The Consent Agenda included a recommendation to approve for first reading of Policy BF, Responding to Complaints. This policy will be placed on the district’s Web site for a 21-day period of public comment.

Motion was made by Marti Sykes, seconded by Walter Childs, to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Consent Agenda Item A passed upon majority roll call vote of 7-to-1 as follows: Ayes - Walter Childs, Alan Duncan, Darlene Garrett, Deena Hayes, Susan Mendenhall, Amos Quick, and Marti Sykes; Abstain – Nancy Routh. Item B passed upon unanimous roll call vote.

Staff Reports

Consideration for Naming of the Grimsley High School Stadium Concession Stand
Members of the public were given the opportunity to share their comments regarding this item. Several community members spoke in favor of naming the Grimsley High School Stadium Concession Stand the John and Ruth Comer Concession and Press Box Facility. Kevin Lear, chief operations officer, presented to the board information relating to the naming of the Grimsley High School Stadium Concession Stand. Mr. Neal Hatcher, previous athletic director of Grimsley High, on behalf of the community, has requested that Grimsley’s Jamieson Stadium concession stand and press box be named in honor of two distinguished individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the Guilford County School District as well as the community. The following name is proposed for consideration:John and Ruth Comer Concession and Press Box Facility. The administration recommends that the Board study and fully consider the recommendation by the community, following a period of public comment or input, or direct the administration to request the community to provide any further information as may be required by the board in order to more fully consider the request and to make a decision.

Motion was made by Marti Sykes, seconded by Darlene Garrett, to follow the administration’s recommendation to study and support the proposed name of John and Ruth Comer Concession and Press Box Facility and, following a period of public comment or input, consider approval of the nomination or direct the administration to request the nominator to provide any further information as may be required by the board in order to more fully consider the request and to make a decision. The motion passed upon unanimous electronic vote.

Status and Progress of Induction and Success Program
Martha Snavely, executive director of induction and success, presented to the board an update on the status and progress of the induction and success program. The number of first-year teachers this year is approximately 515, consisting of 221 elementary, 115 middle school, 116 high school and 13 special schools. The district’s turn-over rate for 2005-06 was 13.6 percent. The goal for this year is to improve the retention rate for beginning teachers.

Support at the district level includes seven induction support coaches. Induction support coaches are in schools daily assisting with lesson planning, classroom management, modeling and general organization. They work to ensure that all state regulations are followed and that appropriate paperwork is filed so, at the end of the three years, beginning teachers are qualified for continuing license.

Support at the school level includes 117 induction coordinators, 32 of which are new coordinators; 667 mentors serving first-, second-, and third-year teachers; and 566 buddy teachers. First- and second-year teacher mentors are paid $50 to mentor one teacher and up to a maximum of $100 to mentor two or more teachers. This is the amount mandated by the state. Third-year teacher mentors are unpaid. Monthly mentor/mentee meetings are held with topics furnished by the induction and success department.

Board members suggested that the staff continue building relationships with the local colleges to help them train prospective teachers to be prepared for work in Guilford County Schools after graduation. There was also discussion regarding the amount mentors are currently being paid. Superintendent Grier suggested the board may wish to address this low-pay issue at budget-planning time, consider payment of a stipend to mentors for attending state-mandated training and possibly add additional staff to the induction and success program.

Magnet Grant Update
Dr. Don Hare, executive director of federal and special programs, presented to the board an update on the status of the magnet grant. Deputy Director of Parental Options and Information Steve Brockhouse, of the U.S. Department of Education, has recommended that the two Montessori middle grades programs not be included in the upcoming grant proposal. Therefore, Erwin and Triangle Lake middle grades program will not be included in the grant proposal. After getting feedback from staff at Penn-Griffin, it appears their plan (audition process) for the high school will not meet the criteria of the MSAP program and, therefore, Penn-Griffin will not be included in the grant.

The staff made the following recommendations for schools to include in the magnet grant:

Theme                                       School(s)
Montessori                                 Washington Street – Grades Pre-K through 5
Will accommodate 200 plus applicants who are unable to attend Erwin or Triangle Lake each year
EXCELerator School                 Allen Jay Middle – Grades 4 through 8
The school will house the VSN program for the Western (High Point) portion of our district (not to be included in the grant).
The magnet portion of the school will feature:
20:1 class sizes in core courses
Foreign language in grades 4-8
Advanced Language Arts
Laptops for each student
All eighth graders taking geometry

International Baccalaureate       Northwood – Grades K-5
Establish a K-5 feeder to Ferndale – Chinese Language offered
Hairston – Grades 6 through 8
Establish a feeder for Falkner IB

Ferndale – Grades 6 through 8
Establish a feeder 6-8 feeder to Central – Chinese Language offered

Board member Susan Mendenhall inquired about the grant process. Dr. Hare explained that the original proposal in August stated that the application would be due by mid October. However, due to certain legal issues as reported by Mr. Brockhouse’s office, the request for proposal (RFP) has not yet been released. Once the RFP is released, the application must be submitted within 45 days. To Dr. Hare’s knowledge, there has been no timeline established as to when notification of the grant award would be given. The original information stated that the notification would be by March 1, but now that there is a delay, this date will probably be adjusted.

After further discussion, Superintendent Grier asked for direction from the board in order for the grant writer and staff to complete the application according to the board’s wishes.
Chairman Duncan requested additional information from staff in regard to the possibilities for Allen Jay. Superintendent Grier also asked that the Washington Street staff have further discussion with its PTA and parent groups. There will be further discussion of the magnet grant at the next board meeting.

Construction Update

Change Order to Contract for Construction at Southern Guilford Middle School
Chairman Duncan announced to the board that this item is not required and, therefore, is being pulled from the agenda.

Change Order to Contract for Construction at Northern Guilford Middle School
Kevin Lear, chief operations officer, presented to the board a recommendation to approve a change order in the amount of $120,662 for the mass rock removal by New Atlantic Contracting, Inc. at Northern Guilford Middle School. The total of the requested change is 1,126.63 cubic yards at $107.10 per cubic yard = $120,662. The funds for this change are currently in the budget under project contingency.

Motion was made by Marti Sykes, seconded by Nancy Routh, to approve payment in the amount of $120,662 for the mass rock removal that has been encountered at Northern Guilford Middle School and submitted to date by New Atlantic Contracting, Inc. The motion passed upon majority electronic vote of 7-to-1 as follows: Ayes – Walter Childs, Alan Duncan, Darlene Garrett, Deena Hayes, Susan Mendenhall, Nancy Routh and Marti Sykes; Nays – Amos Quick.

Board Discussion

Construction Review Panel
Chairman Duncan led the board in a discussion regarding a construction review panel.

Board member Darlene Garrett began by stating that she has talked with people in the community who suggested that the board create a construction review panel. It was suggested that the panel be comprised of construction industry people, someone with an auditor’s background who is familiar with construction dollars, staff members and possibly board members and parents. The general charge of the panel would be to review past planning and implementation processes associated with construction and renovation.

Board members shared thoughts about which people would be the most helpful as members of the committee. Superintendent Grier stated that the panel would need someone with expertise to work on multi-million dollar projects. He also suggested the possibility of having the Council of Great City Schools do an audit as a first step.

Chairman Duncan requested that staff report back to the board on the scope of what the Council of Great City Schools audit would consist of and also what the proposed cost would be. Board members agreed there are some difficult issues regarding the composition of the panel and in terms of its scope. Chairman Duncan recommended the board ask the Architect Selection Company, with Darlene Garrett as the liaison, to recommend a proposal for the board to vote on in terms of composition, scope and timeframe. Board members were in consensus.

Reports from the Chairman

Chairman Duncan reported that two special board meetings will be set for October. One of these meetings will address the bond referendum, and the other will address an MWBE status update.

Chairman Duncan asked the board to consider discussion of recent studies of effectiveness of homework and addressing high school reform, including the governor’s audit, as an agenda item in the future.

Board Comments

Board members were each allowed two minutes to make remarks, as they deemed appropriate.

Adjournment

With no further business, at 9:22 p.m., motion was made by Marti Sykes, seconded by Deena Hayes, to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed upon unanimous voice vote.