| 0:00:06 | Opening and consent agenda | Call to order, roll call, and the request to let Henry report by Google Meet. Consent agenda accepted with the calendar changes (0:01:18, 0:01:51). No citizens present to comment. | |
| 0:02:46 | Into and out of nonpublic session | Motion "for a 91 dash, a three comma Roman numeral A, A and C", seconded, roll call (0:03:16). The tape resumes at 0:03:43 with the motion to come out, then a roll call. The chair asks about sealing and concludes No motion to seal the minutes (0:04:12). | MEDIUM |
| 0:09:18 | Business administrator's remote report | Henry, joining remotely: "At this point, I know we're going to study in, in a deficit, but I have not had an opportunity to go through all the purchase orders." (the transcript's wording) and Because right now I have $2.3 million in encumbrances. (0:09:47). She asks to review them before releasing numbers. The chair asks for material in a form that can go out with the Finance Committee minutes, since we're not going to be having another meeting to August (0:11:13). | |
| 0:13:59 | The FY2022 audit | Crawford: I thought the 22 audit was complete. Henry: It is almost three, but it's not quite complete yet. (0:14:06); asked the hold-up, she has not spoken to the auditor since going on leave (0:14:14); Crawford will call him herself. Earlier Henry described working "with our auditors" to finish FY22 (0:10:32). | MEDIUM |
| 0:14:37 | Health insurance options | Sprague asks for several options given rising costs; Henry has six quotes (three current plans, three others) (0:15:14). Hawkins asks whether this affects FY26; Henry: the district has already signed with SchoolCare, so a change is possible only for FY27 (0:17:22, 0:17:34). | |
| 0:17:55 | Handbooks deferred; board's expectations | Whitney: the board has had grave concerns for many years about the quality of the student handbooks across the district (0:18:22); revised copies by mid-July, for approval at the first August meeting (0:18:59); the board will send a guidance letter. Sprague and Howard note the Stevens handbook was editable rather than open to comment (0:20:32, 0:20:57); Hawkins wants K to 12 consistency (0:21:36); Madden: It's repetitive, it's redundant, it's punitive. (0:23:19); Crawford asks for a focus on excellence, not punishment (0:35:20). | |
| 0:24:32 | Honor roll | Madden: the middle school has none. Koski: it "Goes against middle school philosophy to have an honorable" [honor roll] (0:24:49). Whitney argues for a board policy rather than a directive, since without one There's nothing that we as a board or the administration can actually enforce (0:27:02). Sprague explains how the move to competency-based grading complicates GPA calculations in PowerSchool (0:31:44). Agreed: Madden reports at the first August meeting; Sprague and Madden may ask staff how grading is set up (0:34:37). | |
| 0:35:41 | District Management Group: Special Education Opportunity Review | Chair: informational, for consideration Whether or not we would like to contract with DNG [DMG]. Gallagher, at the superintendent's request, describes a six-month review with a guiding coalition, staff time-logging software and four to five priority findings (0:46:49). Cost: under $100,000 (0:54:19). Sprague: Do we have to spend $100,000 to do it, or can we do it ourselves? (0:55:41). Placed on an August agenda. | |
| 0:56:24 | Professional development for 2025–26 | Koski: priorities from a staff survey, led by classroom management and training on newly adopted programs (0:57:40); Responsive Classroom, the Skillful Teacher (25 teachers enrolled, 1:05:32), OGAP and LETRS; mandatory only for new teachers (1:07:08). Funding: these are all funded through title, federal title, professional development grants (1:09:13); earlier LETRS seats used ESSER money (1:12:36). Koski credits LETRS for K to 2 reading gains (1:11:55); Lewis describes the programs as grounding resources teacher preparation does not cover (1:13:55). | |
| 1:18:30 | Preschool special-education plan for 2025–26 | McCosker: after the board cut the preschool program, the district is still under the obligation from idea to provide preschool services (1:19:55); the district's LEA determination came back, in his words, needs intervention in three of the categories , largely because of preschool (1:21:54); the minutes record it as "needs assistance". Plan: a pilot at Disnard, drop-in services in the afternoon, push-out services to Head Start and other programs, home services if needed (1:26:02); state approval sought for a self-contained program which allows a max of 12 students with one teacher (1:27:26); the teacher is net zero to the budget (1:36:17) because Lewis combined three third grades into two classes of 19 (1:36:40, 1:37:00). | OBS |
| 1:40:35 | Sprague and McCosker dispute the pilot | Sprague asks for the LEA determination report and says the pilot feels like an end run (1:40:55). McCosker: And then you took the funding away for those services. (1:42:13); he cites 17 elementary self-contained students rising to 29 and says out-of-district Cost could be upwards of over $22 million. (1:43:49; the figure is the speaker's, unexplained and possibly garbled); 58 identified children aged 3 to 5. Sprague says case managers give services children do not need; McCosker rejects it (1:45:38). Hawkins asks about paraprofessionals and outcomes (1:47:34, 1:49:35); Lewis ties the curriculum to the New Hampshire early learning standards (1:50:11). Whitney calls the fears legitimate and the need real (1:52:48). | OBS |
| 1:54:28 | Donations | Koski thanks Keene State, Claremont Savings Bank (twice) and Kiwanis (1:54:36). Accepted by the superintendent under policy KCD. | |
| 1:54:49 | Policies: grouping, withdrawals, quick adoptions | The chair: "We're pushing on 9:00 now and we have about 32 policies to do." (1:51:26). Howard asks that DB go back to committee (1:55:32). Hawkins moves the six withdrawals as one motion (1:58:47); carried by voice (1:59:19). Whitney moves to adopt without second read ACE, EHAB, JLDBB (JLCF removed at Hawkins' request, 2:00:52); Howard seconds; carried (2:01:57). Procedures JICD-R, JICK-R(1) and JICK-R(3) need no action (2:02:11). | |
| 2:03:07 | The Finance Committee's eight fiscal policies | Crawford lists the edits: a sentence struck from paragraph four, "this plan will be shared annually with the board" (2:05:26); DB to be postponed (2:05:49); DEA adds that hearings and board votes will be conducted as part of the acceptance process (2:06:01); DGA adds an annual report to the board of designated signers on all district bank accounts (2:06:37); DIE: the board selects auditors annually and The audit report will be given by a representative of the auditing firm. (2:07:31); DK: activity-fund payments need the building principal's and business administrator's signatures (2:07:55); time-and-effort procedures under DAF (2:09:28). Sprague moves adoption (2:10:33); asked whether the administration agreed, Crawford: And there was no administrative team at the meeting, so I have no idea. (2:11:10). Sprague converts the motion to a second read (2:11:31); the chair calls the vote and announces all those policies have been adopted (2:11:34). | MEDIUM POSITIVE |
| 2:12:04 | Attendance, conduct and discipline policies | JH (attendance, absenteeism and truancy) moved by Whitney, seconded by Howard (2:13:30); administration to set the day counts by procedure, consistent K to 12 (2:15:21); adopted (2:15:47). JIC corrected in the meeting to read requiring notification to parents (2:16:43) and adopted as amended (2:17:53). JICD adopted from the NHSBA sample (2:19:02). | |
| 2:19:10 | Wellness and handbook-approval policies | JLCF moved to second read so the committee can work on it in August (2:19:31, 2:19:40). CHCA (approval of handbooks and directives), which carries the handbook timeline, adopted unanimously on second read (2:20:41). | |
| 2:21:14 | Chair's closing remarks; future dates | Whitney: the policies address board oversight which is a structural deficit from ever happening again (2:21:14). No regular meetings in July; Finance Committee Monday, with its prior minutes to be posted (2:23:03); our next formal Claremont School board meeting is August 6th. (2:23:25). | MEDIUM |