Farmington River Regional School District
Farmington River Elementary School
555 North Main Road, Otis, MA 01253
Monday September 11, 2017
Meeting #352
MINUTES
Members Present: Nick DellaGiustina, Jessica Drenga, Carol Lombardo, Billie Pachulski, John Skrip, Arlene Tolopko, Tom Nadolny, and Jane Gleason
Absent: none
Guests: Cathy Couch
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by the chair, Nicholas DellaGiustina.
Community Participation: Cathy Couch was present to bring up a busing issue concerning the time afternoon buses drop off students. Some students have been dropped off anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half past their expected times. This is an issue that needs to be resolved. Tom Nadolny was aware of the situation already and had called Dufour to coordinate a more time efficient solution. A different route was put into effect as of today. Tom would like feedback from Cathy Couch, Susie Avery, and Michelle Fennelly, and Mrs. Guidette to see if this solution is working or not.
- Approval of Minutes of Meeting #351: The minutes of Meeting #351 were approved as corrected. The August Meeting included Carol Lombardo, who was absent.
- Principal/Superintendent monthly updates: Tom provided the monthly updates concerning the school. Opening day was great. Professional Days went smoothly and productively. Blizzard bags were started to prepare for possible snow days.
Enrollment is up from last year from 117 last year to 122, plus a couple new students will be
attending soon.
Ilona Packie has put in her resignation. She will be missed tremendously. There are many
applicants, Tom will start interviewing and hopefully by the end of the week he will have the
position filled.
The new teachers are in place and doing great. We welcomed Amy Matson and Katherine
Graham, they are the new Kindergarten and 4th Grade teachers.
Departmentalization is going smoothly. The students love the fact of changing classes and
the teachers are adjusting as well.
Tom got the MCAS results. As of right now in ELA and Math as a school is on target for the
first time since Tom has been here.
Tom asked the School Committee to change the School Calendar for this year. The School
purchased a new or upgraded software program that the teachers need to learn. Tom would
like to switch the Professional Day in May to October 6th to train the teachers on this new
program system. No Vote needed, but the School Committee should approve since the
calendar is their responsibility. They all agreed to change the dates.
- School Committee to approve Wellness Policy: School committee voted to approve the Wellness Policy. A few changes were made:
- The committee will now meet 4 times a year instead of 2 times a year.
- The a la carte menu was taken off since the school does not have one in place.
- Using food as a reward is only allowed upon the Principal’s discretion.
The policy passed 6 to 1. It will be added to the current Handbook.
- Vote to move to Executive Meeting: A unanimous vote of yes from the School Committee to move to Executive Meeting
- Adjournment:
Roll Call: Nicholas DellaGiustina-yes, Jess Drenga-yes, Hillary Howard-yes, Carol Lombardo, Billie Pachulski-yes, John Skrip-yes
Respectfully submitted,
Teresa DellaGiustina, secretary
tld