School Board Meeting - Thursday, January 10, 2008

1. Call to Order, Regular Meeting 7 pm – President, Ellen Dodson called the meeting to order at 7:02 pm and led the Pledge to the Flag.  The meeting was held at the Nooksack Tribal Offices.

Attendance:            Board Members – Ellen Dodson; Jim Freeman; Russ Pfeiffer-Hoyt; David Smith.

                                                                  Trish Hart was absent and excused

Certificated Administrators –Rick Gantman; Jim Frey; Trina Hall; Pat Bieber-Holmes; Laura Schonberg

                                                               i.      Oath of Office for Re-elected Board Members – The verbage was not available to swear in Ms Dodson, this will be done in a future meeting.

                                                             ii.      Good of the Order – Attachment “B”

2.       Approval of Minutes – December 13th Regular Meeting & Worksession (same evening).   Mr. Pfeiffer-Hoyt moved and Mr. Smith seconded the motion to approve the Minutes.  Motion passed

3.       Consent Agenda – Mr. Pfeiffer-Hoyt moved and Mr. Smith seconded the motion to approve the Consent Agenda. Motion passed. 

a.       Personnel Actions – Attachment “A”

b.       Surplus Personal Property – None

c.       Overnight Trips –

                                                               i.      Wrestling State @ Tacoma – February 14 & 15

d.       Approval of Accounts Payable for January 08 and Payroll for December 07

Vouchers audited and certified by the auditing officer as required by RCW 42.24.080, and those expense claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090, have been recorded on a listing, which has been made available to the Board.  As of this day, January 10, 2008 the Board by a unanimous vote does approve the payment of those vouchers included in the above list and further described as follows:  ASB Fund vouchers #149 – 158 in the total amount of $3,892.20; ASB Fund vouchers #159 – 172 in the total amount of $18,674.79; Capital Projects Fund voucher #1211 in the total amount of $140.00; General Fund vouchers #18189 – 18258 in the total amount of $51, 262.60; General Fund vouchers #18412 - 19514 in the total amount of $142,412.98 and Private Purpose Trust Fund vouchers #104495 – 104496 in the total amount of $310.55.

4.       Information from Board Members

Report on School Board Goals – School Board Portfolio – The portfolio provides accountability for progress the board is making in achieving its goals.  School Board members attended and/or took part in:

o        Visit to Kendall Elementary School Science Classroom

o        WSSDA Math Standards Discussion

o        Levy Task Force

o        Scholarship Foundation Meeting

o        Observed British School Children

5.       Information from the Audience – None

6.       Presentations – Trina Hall, Curriculum Director, provided an overview of the upcoming Curriculum Review process.   Two task force groups will be formed to work on the focus areas – K – 12 Math and Health & Fitness.   Members of the groups will consist of parents/guardians, community members and district staff.

7.       Action Items –

a.       Indian Education

                                                               i.      Impact Aid – Pat Bieber-Holmes explained that Federal Impact Aid is meant to supplant property taxes for students whose parents live or work on Federal Lands.

Public Hearing – At 8:00 pm Ms Dodson opened a Public Hearing to receive input from Tribal members regarding access to educational services and programs in Mt Baker Schools by Nooksack Tribe students.  Ms Holmes-Bieber said that native students take advantage of after school home-work help at the junior and senior high schools.

                                                             ii.      Title VII – Ms. Bieber-Holmes talked about Title VII funds, which provide funding for & support exclusively for Native Students.  The board heard from staff members whose positions are funded with Title VII monies, about their work with Native students.

At 8:25 pm Ms Dodson closed the hearing.

b.       Consideration of Proposal for Maintenance & Operations Levy 2008 – 2012 (Resolution #07/08:10) – Dr. Gantman introduced the Levy proposal and provided an overview and background.  A Levy Task Force has been formed and is working to provide information to the community about the need for the levy.

Public Hearing – At 8:45 pm Ms Dodson opened a Public Hearing to receive comments from the audience.  Staff in attendance supported approval of the Resolution and Levy proposal.

At 8:45 pm Ms Dodson closed the Hearing.  Mr. Pfeiffer-Hoyt moved and Mr. Freeman seconded the motion to approve Resolution #07/08:10.  Motion passed.  The vote date for the levy will be March 11, 2008

8.       Policy – #6570 Property, Data and Records Management – Dr. Gantman recommended the board accept the policy for 2^nd reading and adoption.  Mr. Freeman moved and Mr. Pfeiffer-Hoyt seconded the motion to approve for 2^nd reading and adoption.  Motion passed

.

9.       Reports –

a.       Superintendent’s Report – Dr. Gantman presented the Superintendent’s Report; items include:

o        Harmony Elementary Principalship

o        M & O Levy

o        Nooksack River Deming Dike

o        Timber Ridge High School Update

o        Lake Whatcom Watershed

o        Capital Facilities Plan

o        Levy Task Force

o        Superintendent’s Fireside Chats

o        Mayor Pike – Timber Funds

b.       Business Manager’s Report –

§         Denise Ellis, Business Manager, provided a verbal report.

10.   Meeting(s) Schedule – All meetings begin at 7 pm in the District Office unless otherwise noted

a.       Work sessions & Special Meetings –

§         Thursday, January 24

b.       Regular Meetings

§         Thursday, January 10 @ Nooksack Tribal Offices

11.   Executive Session – There was no Executive Session.  At 9:35 pm Ms Dodson adjourned the meeting.

Respectfully Submitted:

                                                                  ATTEST:                                                    

Ellen Dodson, President                                        Richard Gantman, Superintendent

CLASSIFIED EMPLOYMENT

LEAVES OF ABSENCE

RESIGNATIONS

SUPPLEMENTAL EMPLOYMENT

Good of the Order

January 10, 2008

Mt Baker Food Service employees, Claire Chouaniere, Liz Badillo, Debbie George, Sue VanDyk, Betty Ensley, Cindy Lawrence, Luda Shtunyuk, Beth Pheifer, Naomi Brown and Marlene Blockley took time from their busy schedules on Monday, December 17 to volunteer as a group with Project Santa.  The history of Project Santa is:

Started in 1979 after local deputies noticed while on patrol that many families in Whatcom County were less fortunate and didn't have much.

Rupert DeFries, a deputy at the time, approached the Whatcom Sheriff's Department with an idea of "giving a Christmas" to families in need.

The Sheriff's Department collected $500 from its members and employees to purchase toys, food and trees with ornaments. Managing to obtain a few Santa suits and with the use of their personal vehicles, the Sheriff's Department and search and rescue volunteers assisted 10 families in the first year.

Project Santa Claus kept growing after this point, attracting more volunteers, supporting organizations and community support. Several years into the project, a volunteer suggested a Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser to help raise money to purchase more needed food and toys. Whatcom Transportation Authority soon offered their buses and drivers to serve as transport vehicles or Santa sleighs.

Celebrating its 28th Anniversary in 2007, PROJECT SANTA CLAUS has grown from serving ten families to more than 300 families today!

More than 25 volunteer Santas deliver gifts each year with help from hundreds of volunteer elves. Each family receives a Christmas Dinner complete with turkey, milk, potatoes, stuffing, eggs, cranberry sauce, candy and fruit, as well as toys and clothing items for the children. Many families are referred to Project Santa by social service agencies, schools and other organizations.

Thank you, Mt Baker Food Service personnel for your generous giving of time and effort!

Harmony Elementary staff & students collected 885 pounds of food in December for the Foothill Food Bank.  The big incentive was the very generous offer of one free 13” pizza from Cicchetti’s for EACH CHILD in the winning classroom! Mrs. Hodges’ class won but the true winners were the Foothill Book Bank patrons.

Mount Baker High School Named Bronze by U.S. and News & World Report

Mount Baker Senior High

Mount Baker School District 507 School District
Whatcom County

For more information on this school, visit the SchoolMatters website.

Detailed Information (methodology)

School Data

Demographic Data

Average student performance

Disadvantaged student performance

A local program, C4Kids recently donated $150,000 worth of computer equipment to our school district.  Previous donations included 540 desktops and 65 laptops, worth approximately $2,600 each.  Donations received over the past three years total $1,179,000.  DIS Lease Returns and OSPI (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction) sponsor the program for regional school districts.

The Mt. Baker High School Agriculture Program was named Washington Association of Agriculture Educators Agriculture Program of the Year at the WAAE Summer Conference in Wenatchee July 9-13, 2007.  This award recognizes all 3 aspects of an agriculture program including classroom instruction, Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE), and FFA.  The award was forwarded to the National Association of Agriculture Educators as a candidate for the Region 1 Award and the results were:

Outstanding Ag Ed Program—The Mt. Baker High School Agriculture Program was named National Association of Agriculture Educators Outstanding Ag Ed Program in Region 1, which encompasses eleven western states. 

All special award regional and state winners were recognized at the 2007 NAAE Convention in Las Vegas December 11—15, 2007.   Agriculture teachers, Todd Rightmire and Tamara Whitcomb traveled to Las Vegas to receive the award. 

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