Participants
Everyone heard or addressed on the recording. Spellings follow the agenda and approved minutes. Where the minutes credit a remark to a different member than the dialogue file does, both are given (see flag 4). Unidentified voices stay unidentified. Other students named in the student reports are not listed.
| Name | Role | Participation |
|---|
| Heather Whitney | Chair; Finance Committee member | Presides. Replaces the noticed budget tutorial with an update on the budget process and audits (0:01:04). Says SAT results "are still really required for Stem" (0:18:19) and asks why every student does not take the test (0:21:40). Asks that the student presentation go to the clerk "to be incorporated in the minutes so that everybody has an opportunity to have the public access" (0:32:29). Describes the Finance Committee's December 12 session as "a pre meeting" held "before we, come out in public" (1:09:11). Sets the January 2 hearing target (1:16:05). |
| Frank Sprague | Vice chair; chair, Finance Committee | Comments on PSAT practice from "my own experience" (0:08:16, 0:11:39). Asks the students about credit requirements, recalling his own years at Stevens with "two study halls" (0:51:44). Agrees the Finance Committee will meet on December 12 and 13 ("I'm retired and I'm flexible", 1:08:51). Moves to endorse the school-funding letter (1:20:07, 1:20:16); the approved minutes record that he withdrew it. The dialogue file also gives him the test-optional question (0:17:25), the Educational Talent Search passage (0:19:11) and the point of order (1:21:02), which the minutes credit in whole or part to Michael Petrin. |
| Candace Crawford | Member; chair, Capital Improvement Committee; Finance Committee member | Asks what the PSAT benchmark is (0:05:30) and whether students had test preparation (0:15:30). Answers the students on counseling vacancies: "There are there are two open positions and we can't find teachers." (0:56:53). Calls the budget calendar "a very. Compressed schedule." (1:10:25). Presents the funding-fairness letter to Senator Ruth Ward and asks the board to endorse it (1:17:22, 1:19:49); asks that it come back "For next time for a vote." (1:22:25). |
| Arlene Hawkins | Member; curriculum representative; chair of the SAU 6 board | Asks about the auditors' recommendations and whether the Policy Committee will have work (1:03:36, 1:04:44); asks whether the Friday Finance meeting will be "publicized" and "televised" (1:09:39). Under other business congratulates the board's administrative assistant on a professional certification and asks members to attend the rescheduled SAU 6 meeting after "we did not have a quorum yesterday" (1:23:29, 1:23:54). The dialogue file also gives her the statewide-comparison question (0:23:18) and the question on how the student project began (0:50:38), which the minutes credit to Bonnie Miles. |
| Bonnie Miles | Member | Present per the minutes. No row in the dialogue file carries her name. The minutes credit her with two questions the file gives to Hawkins and with seconding Sprague's motion (see flag 4). |
| Michael Petrin | Member | Present per the minutes. No row in the dialogue file carries his name. The minutes credit him with the test-optional question, part of the Educational Talent Search exchange and the point of order (see flag 4). |
| Whitney Skillen | Member; chair, Policy Committee | Absent per the minutes. |
| Noelle Kronberg | Board clerk | Asked to call the roll (0:00:28); her voice is not separated in the dialogue file. The chair praises her minutes (0:02:54). She submitted the minutes. |
| Mike Koski | Assistant Superintendent (Michael Koski on the agenda) | Presents PSAT and SAT results: "37 students took it in grades 9 to 11" out of "approximately maybe 180" (0:04:41); math proficiency "around 30%", English "low 70s percent" (0:05:54); whole-grade testing puts the district "below a state average" (0:14:37). Says he is "not sure what the decision was in 22 to stop and go to a selective group" (0:22:18). Points the board to iReport NH for comparisons (0:23:43). |
| Mary Henry | Business Administrator | "Audits are going well. Auditors have been in the building" (0:59:01); fiscal 2021 almost done and 2022 under way (0:59:43); "we should have all of these audits through 24 done by June" (1:00:25). Plans an auditor presentation to the board (1:02:07). Proposes the Finance Committee dates of December 12 and 13 (1:07:22, 1:08:04) and says the committee will "Recommend and bring it to the hearing" (1:12:58). |
| Sarah Wheeler | Stevens High School student (senior), psychology class presenter | Presents the survey design and results: "surveys from 194 students and staff from all four grades" (0:34:44); "124 reported to have above average stress stress levels" (0:39:53). Describes her own schedule and the single guidance counselor (0:52:41, 0:55:37). |
| Malachi Caple | Stevens High School student (junior, class vice president), psychology class presenter; surname from the approved minutes only | Reads staff and student written responses about the new schedule (0:42:16 to 0:49:07) and gives the conclusion (0:49:07). Explains the project began in a psychology class (0:50:50). |
| Lilly Clark | Student board member | Student report on fundraising, student council and junior-class events (0:25:49 to 0:28:02). |
| Miles Sheehan | Student board member | Student report on the music department and winter concerts (0:28:37 to 0:29:25). |
| Unidentified | Voices at the table and in the room | 31 of 529 rows: backchannel replies, a roll answer, reactions during the student report and fragments from the stretch where the projector failed (0:31:47 to 0:34:07). |
Agenda
Items from _CSB Agenda 12.4.24.pdf; agenda wording is quoted from that document. Dispositions from the recording, checked against the approved minutes.
| Taken up | Item | Agenda text / disposition |
|---|
| 0:00:02 | I. Call to Order and Pledge; roll call | Called to order at 0:00:02; roll requested at 0:00:28. Minutes: six present, Skillen absent. |
| 0:00:40 | II.a Consent Agenda | Agenda: "a. Consent Agenda (vote required) 1. Amendments and Final Approval of board agenda 2. Minutes Approval- 10.2.24 & 9.30.24 Joint City Council Meeting". Three amendments: the chair replaced item III.3 with an update on the budget process and audits (0:01:04); Crawford added a letter to the state senator (0:02:11); Hawkins added two other-business items (0:02:40). The chair: "Are there any objections to the additions or the alterations to the agenda? Seeing none, we'll accept the changes to the agenda." (0:02:54). No motion or vote on the consent agenda or the minutes. Minutes: "Consent approval". See flag 4. |
| 0:03:18 | II.b Citizens Comments | "Seeing no citizens comments, I won't go through the diatribe of what's expected from citizens." Minutes: none. |
| 0:25:33 | II.c Student Board Member Report | Deferred at 0:03:40 because the student members were absent; given when they arrived, after the PSAT item (0:25:49 to 0:30:57). |
| 0:31:35 | III.1 Stevens High School Psychology Class Presentation (Discussion) | Agenda: "Matt Hammond, SHS Psychology Teacher & students will be presenting on stress related to the new schedule." Postponed at 0:03:40 because the presenters had not arrived; taken up at 0:31:35. Presentation 0:34:17 to 0:49:54; questions to 0:58:43. No action. |
| 0:04:15 | III.2 Update PSAT Results (Discussion) | Koski, 0:04:15 to 0:25:28. No action. |
| 0:58:52 | III.3 Default Budget & Proposed FY26 Budget Summary and Tutorial (Discussion) | Agenda: "Default Budget & Proposed FY26 Budget Summary and Tutorial on School Budgeting, Funding, Tax Impact and Tax Rate Setting (Discussion)". Replaced by the chair's amendment with an audit and budget-calendar update by Mary Henry (0:59:01 to 1:16:45). No budget figure, default budget or tax figure was presented. No action. |
| 1:16:59 | III.4 Sub-Committees (Discussion) | The chair: "Subcommittees, we've kind of discussed that there's nobody needs to present for that or has anything to add." Minutes: "No updates". |
| 1:16:59 | IV. Other Business | Crawford's funding-fairness letter: motion to endorse it as the board (1:20:07, 1:20:16); a second is called for (1:20:47); point of order that the item is not an action item (1:21:02, 1:21:09); carried to the next agenda (1:21:33, 1:22:25). Minutes: "Frank Sprague made a motion to endorse the letter presented by Candace Crawford as the Claremont School Board, Bonnie Miles seconded the motion" and later "Frank Sprague withdrew his motion". Notice of a December 11 funding meeting in Newport (1:22:35). Hawkins: staff recognition and the SAU 6 quorum (1:23:29). |
| Not read | V. Future Dates | Agenda: Claremont board 12.18.24; Finance Subcommittee "1-3 PM at SRVRTC John Goodrich Community Room" on December 18, 2024; FY26 budget public hearing 1/2/2025; deliberative session Saturday, February 1, 2025. The December 12 and 13 Finance sessions set during item III.3 are not on this list. |
| 1:24:59 | VI. Adjournment | "If there's no objection to a during [adjourning] the meeting, I'd like to adjourn the meeting seeing no objections." Minutes: "Consent adjournment 7:55pm". |
Discussion timeline
Times are taken from the dialogue transcript (Dialogue/16192 SchoolBoard120424.mp4.CSV) and link into the recording.
| Time | Topic | What was said | Flags |
|---|
| 0:00:02 | Call to order; consent agenda | The chair reads the consent items, including "Minutes approval from 10 to 24 and nine 3024 of the Joint City Council" (0:01:04), and replaces the budget item with "a brief discussion about where we are at in the budgeting process, where we are at with audits currently". Changes accepted on no objection (0:02:54); the chair thanks the clerk: "you do great minutes" (0:02:54). | OBSERVATION |
| 0:04:15 | PSAT results, fall 2024 | Koski: "37 students took it in grades 9 to 11. I have approximately maybe 180." Math proficiency "around 30%"; English "upper the I think it's low 70s percent" (0:05:54); a "little concerning" share met neither benchmark. The district pays for the tests (0:09:21). | |
| 0:10:04 | SAT and earlier PSAT comparisons | Spring 2023 SAT: "We had 95 test takers. So the whole 11th grade takes the test", with "a pretty steep increase in the not achieving on either benchmark" (0:10:24). Fall 2022 PSAT: "205 students were tested" with about 15% meeting both benchmarks against "closer to 40% when students are selecting themselves" (0:12:55). Whole-grade results come out "below a state average" (0:14:37). | |
| 0:15:30 | Test preparation and admissions | Crawford asks about prep; Koski: "I don't know." whether it was done (0:16:10), and "you can raise a student score 100 to 200 points without too much effort" (0:16:39). Test-optional admissions (0:17:25, 0:17:42); the chair: results "are still really required for Stem" (0:18:19). A member describes the Educational Talent Search program and says "I only have an associate's degree" (0:19:11, 0:19:38); see flag 4 on who spoke. | OBSERVATION |
| 0:21:40 | Why not test every student | The chair asks; Koski: "I think that was the argument when it stopped in 22." and "you can talk to the new administration about that" (0:21:59, 0:22:18). Crawford: requiring it "can skew the results" (0:22:29). | |
| 0:23:18 | Statewide comparison | A member asks for figures from other districts (Hawkins in the dialogue file; Miles in the minutes). Koski: "Google I report NH" (0:23:43); "In general, the poorer towns are near the bottom." (0:24:29); the western part of the state "south of Lebanon" scores lower (0:25:01). | OBSERVATION |
| 0:25:33 | Student board member report | Fundraising for a Puerto Rico trip, a donkey basketball game, charity drives, a winter pep rally, a junior-class board-game night on December 5 (0:25:49 to 0:28:02); All-State music festival, December 16 and 17 concerts, a new jazz band (0:28:37 to 0:30:16). | |
| 0:31:35 | Psychology class presentation: setup | The presenters hand out copies; the chair asks that the presentation "be given to Chelsea to be incorporated in the minutes so that everybody has an opportunity to have the public access" (0:32:29). The projector cannot be connected (0:32:41 to 0:34:17). | POSITIVE |
| 0:34:17 | Survey: sleep, stress and the new schedule | Wheeler: "we collected, surveys from 194 students and staff from all four grades" (0:34:44), to test whether stress "is originating from this new schedule" (0:35:12). The most common answer for nightly sleep was seven hours against a recommended eight (0:38:15). "Out of 194 students and staff, 124 reported to have above average stress stress levels. This means that 63.8% of student and staff attending Stevens High School has higher stress levels than they should." (0:39:53). | |
| 0:41:53 | Written responses from staff and students | A staff response: "we have under four hours of prep time each week" (0:42:43). Malachi: "The general consensus is there's not enough time." and "when our periods are only 46 minutes" (0:43:38, 0:43:57). A second staff response: "Further research should have been done prior to implementation" (0:44:17). A student response: "I wake up at 5:00 to finish last night's work" (0:46:22). Graduation rate "at 79.5 in 2022, and well, last year it went up to 81%" (0:48:03). Conclusion: "We believe that this is directly correlated to the new schedule based on the student teacher responses." (0:49:07). | |
| 0:50:00 | Board questions to the students | The chair: "the board will digest this and certainly take it into consideration." How the project began (0:50:38, 0:50:50). Sprague on credits; Wheeler: "Now there's the 21 I believe a 23 and then 27." (0:52:41). "We have one guidance counselor." (0:55:37). Crawford: "There are there are two open positions and we can't find teachers." (0:56:53). Malachi: "We really didn't come here to like almost attack you guys" (0:57:44). The chair: "this will be available to the public" and "it's on the website" (0:58:36). | POSITIVE |
| 0:58:52 | Audit status | Henry: auditors are reconstructing records from "copies of checks" and deposits (0:59:11); "They're working on the next year, which is 22 right now. And so 21 is almost 21." (0:59:21, 0:59:43); "we should have all of these audits through 24 done by June, I would say." (1:00:25). The chair restates it: "the expectation is that 23 and 24 will be completed by June of 2025." (1:01:03). The auditor will present, probably by Zoom, in January if agenda space allows; the fiscal 2021 results first (1:01:28 to 1:03:04). Henry expects new work for the Policy Committee from the findings (1:04:50). | MEDIUM |
| 1:06:00 | Budget calendar and Finance Committee sessions | The draft budget goes to the Finance Committee by week's end (1:06:00). Henry asks to meet "just finance Committee on on Thursday" (1:07:22) and holds a second session on the 13th "that would be here and would be on CCTV" (1:08:04). The chair: "the first meeting on the 12th is just to do a pre meeting for, the 13th. So we can go over everything within the budget, make sure that we understand what we're doing before we, come out in public" (1:09:11). Hawkins: "Will the Friday morning be publicized? Is that televised?" (1:09:39). Sprague: "Can you let Chelsea know so she can get it out." (1:08:28). Crawford: "That's a very. Compressed schedule." (1:10:25). A third session on December 18, 1 to 3 p.m. (1:12:32). | MEDIUM |
| 1:12:44 | Who approves the budget, and the hearing | Crawford asks whether the budget is approved on the 18th; Henry: "Recommend and bring it to the hearing. And then after the hearing, you'll need to make." (1:12:58); Crawford: "The hearing. We can change it." (1:13:03). Crawford calls a same-day committee recommendation and board action "expecting a lot of the rest of the board" (1:14:29). Hearing target: "January 2nd. Correct. But that hasn't been warranted yet." (1:16:11). | |
| 1:17:17 | Letter to Senator Ward on adequacy aid | Crawford presents a Funding Fairness Project letter asking the state senator, whom she describes as Senate Education Committee chair, for a bill raising adequacy aid "to the 7356 per student" from 4100 (1:18:05, 1:18:50); her account of the lawsuit and of Claremont's role in it is her characterization. The chair: "I personally don't feel comfortable with that." (1:20:01). Motion "We we, endorse the letter" (1:20:16). Point of order: "this is not on our agenda. It's not under the discussion reaction items. So technically, I'm not sure we can take action" (1:21:09). Carried to the next meeting (1:21:46, 1:22:25). | POSITIVE OBSERVATION |
| 1:23:29 | SAU 6 quorum failure | Hawkins: "As we know, we did not have a quorum yesterday and we could not meet." (1:23:54); "We have legal deadlines we must follow." (1:24:16); "There was illness. There were reasons" (1:24:39). She asks each member to attend the rescheduled SAU 6 meeting (see the December 12 page). | OBSERVATION |
| 1:24:59 | Adjournment | By no objection. Minutes: 7:55 p.m. | |
Items flagged for review
These flags are a reviewer's aid, not findings of violation and not legal advice. Each one names the rule it rests on, as that rule read on December 4, 2024, or is labeled an observation where no verified rule applies.
MEDIUM The Finance Committee planned a December 12 "pre meeting" on the budget, described as preparation before going "out in public"
Henry asked to meet "just finance Committee" on Thursday, December 12 (1:07:22), and the chair, herself a committee member, described it as "just to do a pre meeting for, the 13th. So we can go over everything within the budget, make sure that we understand what we're doing before we, come out in public" and "Before we go out and publicly discuss what's within the budget." (1:09:11, 1:10:10). The committee is Sprague (chair), Crawford and Whitney. A subcommittee of a school board is a public body under RSA 91-A:1-a, VI(d), which ends "or any committee, subcommittee, or subordinate body thereof, or advisory committee thereto", and a quorum of it convened to discuss the budget is a meeting under RSA 91-A:2, I that needs 24 hours' posted notice and minutes under RSA 91-A:2, II. Two further gaps are in this record: the agenda's own Future Dates list only the December 18 Finance session, and the December 13 televised session was arranged on the floor, with Hawkins asking whether it would be "publicized" (1:09:39). This page does not establish whether the December 12 session took place, with how many members, or with notice; no notice or minutes of a December 12 Finance session were found in the December 4 or December 18 packet folders, and a Drive search returned nothing, which is not proof. Graded MEDIUM because the concern rests on a plan stated on tape, not on a session shown to have occurred unnoticed.
Sources: RSA 91-A:1-a, VI(d) (subcommittees are public bodies); RSA 91-A:2, I and II (2024 codification; definition of a meeting, notice, minutes); _CSB Agenda 12.4.24 (Future Dates)
MEDIUM The fiscal 2021 audit was still unfinished in December 2024 and fiscal 2022 had just begun; if federal spending reached the threshold, the single audits were years overdue
Henry reported the fiscal 2021 audit almost finished, fiscal 2022 begun, and fiscal 2023 and 2024 targeted for June 2025 (0:59:43, 1:00:25); the chair restated the June 2025 target (1:01:03). The district's fiscal year ends June 30. Under the Uniform Guidance a non-federal entity that spends the threshold amount or more in federal awards in a year must have a single audit ($750,000 for these years), and the report is due the earlier of 30 days after the auditor's report or nine months after the fiscal year end, so the fiscal 2021 report was due by March 31, 2022. Whether Claremont crossed the threshold in each year is not stated in this record, which is why this is not graded HIGH. No New Hampshire statute located for this date sets a deadline for a district's own audit: RSA 21-J:19 lets a district hire an independent auditor and is permissive. Mitigation on tape: the staff are reconstructing missing records, the auditor will report to the board in public, and the business administrator expects the audits to be current by mid-2025.
Sources: 2 CFR 200.501(a), 2023 annual edition ($750,000 threshold); 2 CFR 200.512(a)(1), 2023 annual edition (nine months); RSA 21-J:19 (district may hire auditors; permissive); approved minutes 12.4.24, item III.3
OBSERVATION The consent agenda named minutes the board had already approved, omitted the draft in the packet, and was adopted without the vote the agenda calls for
The agenda lists "Minutes Approval- 10.2.24 & 9.30.24 Joint City Council Meeting" under a heading that reads "Consent Agenda (vote required)". The October 2 minutes had been approved by consent on October 16 (approved minutes of October 16, item II.a), and at the November 20 meeting the assistant superintendent had pointed out the same error, recorded in the approved November 20 minutes as "the date for the October minutes was incorrect (read 10.2.24, should read 10.16.24)". The December 4 packet holds the November 20 draft minutes, which the agenda does not name; the December 18 agenda then lists "11.20.24 & 12.4.24". On tape the chair took the agenda changes on no objection (0:02:54), asked for corrections to "our minutes" without naming a date, and moved on; no motion was made and no vote taken. The approved minutes record "Consent approval" against the 10.2.24 and 9.30.24 minutes. Approval by unanimous consent is a recognized practice, so no rule is cited; the defect is that the published record shows the board approving the wrong set of minutes, for the second meeting running.
Sources: _CSB Agenda 12.4.24; approved minutes 10.16.24; approved minutes 11.20.24; CSB Agenda 12.18.24; approved minutes 12.4.24
OBSERVATION The approved minutes credit several remarks to Bonnie Miles and Michael Petrin that the dialogue file gives to other members
The approved minutes record "Bonnie Miles asked how the project originated" and "Bonnie Miles asked if these assessments are done across the state"; the dialogue file gives both to Arlene Hawkins (0:50:38, 0:23:18). They record "Michael Petrin asked about trends in higher education regarding SAT requirements", "Michael Petrin said that it does still exist" in the Educational Talent Search exchange, and "Michael Petrin asked a point of order question"; the dialogue file gives all three to Frank Sprague (0:17:25, 0:19:11, 1:21:02). The segment at 1:21:02 carries both "That's my motion." and "Kind of a point of order question.", which fits two voices. The minutes also name Miles as seconder of Sprague's motion, where the tape has only a call for a second (1:20:47). Miles and Petrin, both present, have no attributed rows in the file. The minutes are the official record and are followed for attendance and motions on this page; for the remarks themselves both attributions are shown, because the diarizer is known to merge voices in this file and the minutes do not quote. This matters for one passage in particular: the speaker at 0:19:38 says "I only have an associate's degree", which should not be read as a fact about Sprague without confirmation. No rule is cited.
Sources: approved minutes 12.4.24, items III.1, III.2 and IV; Dialogue/16192 SchoolBoard120424.mp4.CSV
OBSERVATION The SAU 6 board failed to make a quorum on December 3, a month before its budget deadline
Hawkins, who chairs the SAU 6 board, told this board that the SAU 6 meeting "yesterday" had no quorum, that "We have legal deadlines we must follow", and asked each member present to attend the rescheduled meeting (1:23:54 to 1:24:39). The SAU budget and its apportionment fall under RSA 194-C:9, I, which provides for the apportionment to be adopted at a meeting held before January 1 and certified before January 15. Seven of the twelve SAU 6 seats belong to this board's members, so their attendance decides the SAU quorum. The rescheduled meeting was held on December 12; see that page. No violation occurred on December 3; this is context for the deadline Hawkins cited.
Sources: RSA 194-C:9, I (SAU budget apportionment); approved minutes 12.4.24, item IV
POSITIVE An unnoticed action item was withdrawn on a point of order and placed on the next agenda
Crawford asked the board to endorse the funding letter as a body, and a motion was made (1:19:49, 1:20:16). A member then raised that "this is not on our agenda" and that members might not have known it was "coming up tonight" (1:21:09, 1:21:25). The chair offered tabling or individual signatures; the motion was withdrawn and the letter carried forward (1:21:33, 1:22:25). The December 18 agenda lists "NH Senator Letter (Vote) (Exhibit C)", and the letter appears in that packet as an exhibit, as the chair asked (1:22:27). No statute located for this date forbids a regular meeting from acting on an item added at the meeting; the board chose to give the public notice anyway.
Sources: CSB Agenda 12.18.24 (item IV.4); Exhibit C- Dear Senator Ward
POSITIVE A student presentation critical of the district's schedule was heard in full and posted with the packet
The board gave two students about 27 minutes for their survey and the written responses of staff and students, including criticism of the administration's schedule change (0:34:17 to 0:49:54), then questioned them and answered on counseling vacancies (0:50:00 to 0:58:30). The chair asked that the handout be made public (0:32:29), and SHS ECH Psychology Class Presentation_0001.pdf was added to this meeting's packet folder on December 6, 2024. The survey responses are presented without student or staff names. None of this is required by statute.
Sources: SHS ECH Psychology Class Presentation_0001.pdf (Drive createdTime 2024-12-06); approved minutes 12.4.24, item III.1
Appendix: source files
Official and public sources
Project files
Working files this page was built from. The dialogue file is linked; the others are not published with the page.
Dialogue/16192 SchoolBoard120424.mp4.CSV (529 attributed rows; the basis of this page)Input/Videos/16192 SchoolBoard120424.mp4Input/Transcripts/16192 SchoolBoard120424.mp4.jsonInput/SupportingDocuments/MAP.md, section 246
Laws and rules cited on this page