Board Meeting Dates

Additional Details

District and Community Relations Committee Meeting

AGENDA

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

6:00 PM

John Milne Community Board Room, Alice and Bruce King Educational Complex, 6400 Uptown NE

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Minutes of District and Community Relations Committee Meeting

The Board of Education

Albuquerque Public Schools

A District and Community Relations Committee meeting of the Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education was held Wednesday, December 12, 2012, beginning at 6:00 p.m. in the John Milne Community Board Room, Alice and Bruce King Educational Complex, 6400 Uptown NE.

I.          Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 6:07 p.m.

1. A. Roll Call

Present: Analee Maestas, Kathy Korte, Lorenzo Garcia, Paula Maes, David Robbins, David Peercy

Absent: Martin Esquivel

1. B. Adoption of the December 12, 2012, District and Community Relations Agenda (Discussion/Action)

II.         District and Community Relations Chair Lorenzo Garcia

Chairman Garcia welcomed attendees and reviewed the agenda for the meeting.  Attendees were invited to introduce themselves.  In attendance were Senator Linda Lopez, Senator Gerald Ortiz y Pino, Senator-Elect Jacob Candelaria, Representative Rick Miera, Representative-Elect          Patricia Roybal-Caballero, Representative Gail Chasey, Representative James Smith, Representative-Elect     Elizabeth Thomson, Representative-Elect Christine Trujillo, Representative Jimmie Hall, Art Melendrez, Dr. Gloria Rendon, Theresa Saiz, Debora Henwood, Pamela Meyer, Beth Mann, SuperSAC Representative Corinne Foskey, SuperSAC Representative  Manuel Marquez, SuperSAC Representative Parker       Moses, SuperSAC   Representative Cameron Rosales, Shelly Green, Joseph Escobedo,  Dr. Brad Winter, Don Moya, Steve Tellez, Eddie Soto, Carrie Robin Menapace, and Brenda Yager

Senator Michael Padilla couldn’t attend the meeting due to a conflicting legislative town hall in his district. Superintendent Brooks was not available due to the celebration of the birth of his granddaughter.

III.        Interim Chief Academic Officer Shelly Green Welcome/Introductions

Shelly Green explained about the common core state standards implementation and how APS is playing a large role in implementing common core around the nation.

SuperSac student representatives shared their insight regarding many topics including policy decisions, pupil teacher ratio and the budget.

IV.       Presentation on Budget Outlook for FY14 (Discussion)

Don Moya reviewed the budget process and the budget results of the past.

Topics discussed regarding this agenda item included:

• State revenue increases
• State spending on education through the state equalization guarantee (SEG) and through other educational initiatives
• Request for support from legislators to keep funding flowing through the SEG
• Educational retirement funding
• Taxes from tobacco sales
• Negative impacts of reduced enrollment on funding
• Employee and employer shares of medical insurance costs
• Medicaid state match
• Costs of teacher migration through the tier system
• Raises for staff in the past and future
• Request for support from legislators for waiver for class sizes
• Difficulty finding highly qualified teachers
• Positions eliminated since 2010 due to budget cuts
• Educational outcomes for students in the classroom with high student-teacher ratio; for example, difficult to reach the depth of knowledge needed in AP classes and difficult for teachers to maintain control
• Effects of below the line expenditures or educational initiatives directed by the New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED)
• K-3 plus program effects on closing the achievement gap
• Funding of fine arts initiatives
• Importance of focusing on special needs balanced with the need of guaranteeing every student a quality education
• Importance of focusing funding on direct instruction

V.        Legislative Agenda (Discussion)

Carrie Robin Menapace, legislative liaison and policy analyst, reviewed the APS legislative agenda for the upcoming 2013 Legislative Session and requested support from legislators and the community.

Topics discussed regarding this agenda item included:

• Student achievement focus and implementation
• Support for teachers
• Importance of continued professional development for teachers and principals
• Reading techniques and interventions
• Engaging families in understanding their responsibilities and capabilities to support their student’s success
• Effect of truancy on student achievement
• Expanding the K-3 plus program
• Preparing students for success in higher education
• Equitable funding for all schools and students
• Flexible investment opportunities
• Technology requirements of new testing protocol
• Importance of school boards establishing police departments to protect students and staff
• Increasing mental health and health resources and services
• School-based health centers at risk, which are critical to students and communities
• Bullying interventions
• Reasons for the drop in enrollment
• Successful students start with programs in pre-K
• Extended day programs
• Importance of working with students individually to address their needs and help them graduate
• Teachers as advisors
• Importance of parents enforcing the necessity to setting up patterns early by sending students to school on time in kindergarten
• Correlation of class size and student achievement
• Smaller class sizes are especially important for younger students to implement individualized teaching
• Concern for overcrowding of schools
• Lack of funding to support education based on state statute
• Research showing significant improvement only will begin when class sizes are reduced to 15 students
• Current facilities do not support small class sizes
• Direction from the legislature must be supported by funding to implement programs
• Concern for employees, who have not received a raise in five years
• Everyone is asked to do more and more and get less and less
• Concern for teachers having to play the additional role of advisor
• Encouragement to support early education with grant opportunities
• Importance of building relationships with parents to value schools and importance of kids going to school
• Challenges of addressing diverse populations
• Support for the district to have a grant writing staff
• Support for collaboration with other groups to solve problems
• Concern about support for the common core implementation
• Professional learning communities to help prepare lessons to address common core

VI.       Round Robin Discussion/Questions

Topics discussed during this section of the meeting included:

• Rural communities could be used as models for parent engagement
• Suggested that community school directors tasked with finding grant money for community schools
• Albuquerque Public Schools and community partnerships
• Concern about the NMPED school instructional audits, but no funding to implement the audits
• Request that NMPED provide reports of results from funding for educational initiatives

VII.      Closing from Chair Lorenzo Garcia

VIII.     Next District and Community Relations Committee Meeting

Lorenzo Garcia announced that the next District and Community Relations Committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 22, 2013, at 5:00p.m., in the Delayo Martin Community Room of the Alice and Bruce King Educational Complex.

IX.       Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 8:01 p.m.