Hello all,
A huge thank you to the Worthington community for supporting our FY23 school budgets at Annual Town Meeting yesterday! We are so grateful for your steadfast support. As a parent, I feel incredibly lucky that my children attend such a special school. The Conwell teachers are dedicated, creative and work so hard as team to support their students, their students’ families, and one another. This amazing learning community could not exist without your ongoing support.
The school committee meeting this Thursday will start with the annual re-organization that is required after every town election. We will need to nominate Chair and Vice Chair positions and discuss subcommittee appointments, and we’ll briefly review ethics training and our role as elected school committee members.
Agenda items of note:
1) We’d like input from families and community members before we have our District Goal-setting meeting next month. Please join us Thursday to let us know what you think we should be addressing in our Superintendent, District, and School Committee goals for the next 2 years. If you have concerns, needs, dreams or visions for changes and improvements to the district, we want to hear about it.
If you are not able to join us Thursday, but you have thoughts, please feel free to email Gretchen at gmorsedobosz@hr-k12.org or one of the school committee members: Amanda Brooks-Clemeno: abrooksclemeno@scm.hr-k12.org, Deb Clapp: dclapp@scm.hr-k12.org, Pam Thompson: pthompson@scm.hr-k12.org, Alison Todd: atodd@scm.hr-k12.org, Cai Walkowiak: cwalkowiak@scm.hr-k12.org
2) Following up on a question a community member raised at our budget hearing, we’re beginning a process of exploring the various reasons families of Elementary students might choose to “choice-out” of Worthington and seek school choice slots in another district, so that we can do our best to meet the needs of Worthington families and so we can reduce our choice-out costs. This will be an ongoing exploration, but if you have thoughts you would like to share about your own reasons for sending your children to another district or ideas for how to better meet the needs of Worthington elementary students, we would like to hear them. Again, you may join us Thursday, or email one of us if you’d like to chat outside of the regular meeting.
3) we’d like to invite Conwell staff to a listening session, similar to the listening sessions we have held in the community, sometime before the end of the school year. This will be an informal tea and conversation with 2 school committee members and any staff who would like to attend, and it’s an opportunity for you to share with us what is going well, what needs our attention, and what goals or needs you have for the future. So perhaps a few staff members will be able to attend our meeting this week or can advise Gretchen ahead of our meeting to let us know when might be the best options for you all for us to schedule that conversation.
Thanks so much. See you Thursday!
Warmly,Alison
Alison Todd, Chair
Worthington School Committee
home: (413) 238-0198
cell: (413) 374-7605
atodd@scm.hr-k12.org
pronouns: she/her/hers
NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING
WORTHINGTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
P.O. BOX 247
WORTHINGTON, MA 01098
SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING Virtual * Link below
5/12/22 6:30pm
Next meeting: 6/9/22
AGENDA
We are meeting virtually until further notice, here are the details to participate by video or to call in.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86538182694?pwd=NDJ4Y1U5dnRiREhseHFDbHlHNVVUUT09
Meeting ID: 865 3818 2694
Passcode: 088178
Dial by your location
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
Meeting ID: 865 3818 2694
Passcode: 088178
Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/keFnSmC9Ou
Please be advised that some portion of the meeting may be held in Executive Session.
All or part of the meeting may be recorded.
Find documents to be discussed at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1QhjSJ5xkmTOFzrdz3qiOUmjsvD9_4POg?usp=sharing
| 6:30 pm | 1. Call to Order and Committee Reorganization – nominations and votes for offices and subcommittees; ethics training |
| 6:45 pm | 2. Audience Comment |
| 7:00 pm (If audience comment ends early, the meeting will proceed earlier) | 3. Routine Matters 3.1 Approval of past minutes – 4/14/22 3.2 Follow-up on tabled items and action items 3.3 Correspondence 3.4 HRSC Update – Cai 3.5 Listening session report out – Cai and Pam 3.6 Selectboard Update – Charley 3.7 PTO Update 3.8 Principal/Superintendent update |
| 7:30 pm | 4. Policy 4.1 Community input on District goals for next year 4.2 Reducing choice-out numbers: exploring why families leave, how to meet their needs 4.3 schedule end-of-year listening session with staff 4.4 Potential honorary naming of library 4.5 Continue meeting remote, hybrid, or in-person? 4.6 letters of appreciation to staff 4.7 Counsel-recommended changes to policies ACAB and AC – 2nd reading |
| 8:30 pm | 5. Finance Items 5.1 Vote to accept donation of computers – 2 iMac desktops from Smith College for library and cafeteria 5.2 Line item transfers |
| 8:50 pm | 6. New Business/Future Agenda Items – 6/9: District goal-setting; 8/11: Social Emotional Learning overview |
| 7. Action Items | |
| 9:00 pm | 8. Additional Audience comment, then adjourn |
Alison Todd, Chair