Northport Schools Notebook: Contract Update, Outside Use of District Facilities and More

BOE Ponders the UTN's Latest Offer
Although contract negotiations weren’t part of the Board of Education’s April 29 agenda, United Teachers of Northport President Antoinette Blanck confirmed after the meeting that district counsel John Gross acknowledged via email that the board had received and would be reviewing it.

That proposal offers a 0% increase to salaries and no cash payment of step increment for the current school year as part of a four year contract.

Blanck said no mediation session has been scheduled, and confirmed that Gross will be meeting with trustees in executive session before the beginning of the next BOE meeting scheduled for May 9. Executive sessions are not open to the public.

Blanck said the UTN proposal was “fair” but by no means a done deal. “We’re willing to talk about it. We’re not adverse to that.”

Blanck said that the decision to go public with the new offer was in response to the , in which he said that there had been no new written offers from the UTN since the district made its November 22 offer. “It looked like we hadn’t moved, which wasn’t true,” Blanck said, noting that many ideas since then had been put forth by the union -- hence the decision to put it all in writing and go public.

Board President Steve Waldenburg confirmed that the Board had yet to discuss the proposal but added, “It all comes down to number crunching. What does it cost the district? It’s that type of data we need to look at.”

Trustees Approve Western Suffolk BOCES Budget and Candidates
By a unanimous vote, the Western Suffolk BOCES Administrative Budget for 2011-2012, as well as the appointment of Jeannette Santos (Amityville UFSD) and Peter Wunsch (Commack UFSD) to fill two vacant seats on the BOCES Board.

That administrative charge to the 18 districts which use BOCES services – the only piece of the budget that the Boards vote on -- totaled $3,607,309. That represents a modest 0.65 percent over 2010-2011.

Trustee Donna McNaughton, who, along with Board VP Karen Wills, attended the April 7 Western BOCES Meet the Candidates meeting, said she was pleased to see the small increase. Last year the Northport BOE voted down the budget, but McNaughton said this year she was “very much in favor” of supporting it.

McNaughton noted that the service portion of the budget – which the Board does not vote on --  had increased. However, “we are in complete control of that number” because it’s based on the amount of services that students in the district receive. Director of Special Education Christina Pulaski confirmed that 63 students currently attend Western BOCES, with 47 expected for next year, although the numbers are fluid given the changing needs of the students.

While praising BOCES for doing a “fantastic” job, Wills also praised the ability of the  district to identify and assess the needs of each individual student through CSEs.  She said she’d like to continue the present policy of keeping students within the district whenever possible to help develop a sense of community.

Is Weighting Still Necessary?
“Weighting” of special education students essentially reduces class size to allow for students’ needs by assigning a number to students.  That practice came under scrutiny as the Board and members of the administration debated the issue during a special work session on Board policy following the BOE meeting.

Special Ed Director Christina Pulaski gave some history as to weighting in the district, saying it came from a time when the district was trying to mainstream students within the classroom.  Now, Pulaski said,  new, more specific IEPs (Individualized Education Programs) and lowered class size across the board made more sense.

Wills was not convinced, and said she was against removing weighting without seeing how students would be protected.

McDermott disagreed, saying she felt that the IEP – a legal document – would protect students more than the assignation of a number.

Trustee Andrew Rapiejko asked if there were a way to indicate a desired class size on the IEP that would be beneficial to the student.  Pulaski said she would check with the state.

Admission Fees for Inter-Scholastic Activities
Current policy does not allow for admission to be charged at regular home  inter-scholastic events, with the exception of Section XI post-season tournament play. Board members and Athletic Director Drew Cronin discussed the issue, with Waldenburg saying he was “leery” about adding fees and Wills saying she would not be in favor because such events bring the community together. The policies discussed during the public work session can be viewed here.

Trustee Joe Gannon noted that the policy doesn’t preclude accepting donations. After much discussion, the Board agreed that Cronin should research the issue of donations.

Use of District Facilities
Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds Anthony Resca noted that current policy lacks a list of  penalties in response to damages and vandalism caused by outside groups when using district facilities, as well as a way for those groups to argue such penalities. McNaughton suggested adding a security deposit but Resca said that amount, as well as where the money would be deposited, would need to be added to the policy as well.

Waldenburg suggested that a schedule of fees could be discussed and voted on at the yearly organizational meeting in July.

The issue of wear-and-tear on the fields also arose. In the end, BOE members agreed to take another look at the policy once a reference to a fee schedule is added, along with a re-wording that would allow a usage fee for wear-and-tear that would be put toward maintenance of the fields.

Upcoming Meetings and Events
A hearing on the Finalized Budget will take place  Monday, May 9 at 7:30 PM in the William J. Brosnan School Cafeteria.

A Meet-the-Candidates night, hosted by the PTA Council, will take place on Tuesday, May 10 in the Northport High School library.

A special meeting to accept voting returns will take place at approximately 9:20 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17 in the William J. Brosnan School Gymnasium