School Board Winds Up Its Summer Meeting Schedule

By Eliza Hallabeck

The next regularly scheduled meeting for the Board of Education will be on September 1, the day before school starts. Concluding its summer work on August 11, the school board approved curricula and textbooks and received reports from Superintendent of Schools Janet Robinson.

During the meeting a representative from the Connecticut Association of Board of Education (CABE) also spoke to explain the meaning and circumstances surrounding a non-meeting and collective bargaining practices. (See separate article called, CABE Representative Explains ‘Non-Meeting’ Practices To School Board.)

At the start of the meeting, board member Anna Wiedemann asked for discussion of a transportation contract moved from an owner/operator to MTM Transportation be added to the agenda for the night’s meeting. School board Chair Elaine McClure said it could be added to the agenda for the night, but also said a meeting between herself, Ms Wiedemann, and Superintendent of Schools Janet Robinson could also happen and discussion on the topic could be added to the next regular school board meeting, scheduled for September 1. Ms Wiedemann agreed.

In an update regarding the potential resurgence of the H1N1 virus this fall, Dr Robinson said the vaccines expected might not arrive in the district until after the initial outbreak. The number of doses expected for the district also varies.

Normal flu vaccination dates have been scheduled for October, “and people should not ignore that,” said Dr Robinson.

No one will be required to be vaccinated, she said, but stressed the need for everyone in need of a vaccine to get it.

Dr Robinson said daily updates on the topic are available on the school district’s website, www.newtown.k12.ct.us.

“[Health District Director Donna Culbert] has been wonderful in terms of communications,” said Dr Robinson. “She has been delightful in terms of sharing information and how to be helpful.”

Dr Robinson also said a newsletter should be put together before the start of the school year for parents on the issue.

During the meeting the board also approved the Year End Financial Report and Transfers. Interim Business Director Diane Raymo was absent for the meeting, but Dr Robinson said she was available by phone if school board members had questions.

“By and large, she has things in pretty good shape,” said Dr Robinson of Ms Raymo.

Dr Robinson said the transitions to the new year were all done by hand.

“I’ve become much more involved in seeing how things are done,” said Dr Robinson, “and we need to step up in this.”

The board also approved curricula and, for some of the courses, textbooks, for music, physics, and Chinese.

Assistant Superintendent of Schools Linda Gejda introduced “probably the faculty member who came furthest to attend this meeting,” the new teacher from Newtown High School’s sister school, Liaocheng Middle School No. 3 in the Shandong Province of China, Ding Hong. Foreign Language department Chair Paula Greenfield presented the new curricula for the courses Mr Ding will be teaching with him.

Mr Ding said he is “trying to give every student access to the Chinese language and the Chinese culture.”

The course will be open to students at all grade levels, and each student will be given a workbook, like every other language course at the school, to practice Chinese characters.

Ms Greenfield said there are 40 students expected to take the course this fall, and she thinks that number will grow.

“Chinese is not as difficult as many people imagine,” said Mr Ding to the school board.