May 15, 2017 at 6:30 PM - GMSD Board Meeting

Brianna Gould

Germantown Municipal Schools Teacher of the Year Grades PreK-4^th.

Keri Eldridge

Germantown Municipal School District Teacher of the Year Grades 5^th-8^th

Tennessee Southwest Regional Teacher of the Year Grades 5^th – 8^th

Jessica Minton

Germantown Municipal School District Teacher of the Year Grades 9^th – 12^th

Tennessee Southwest Regional Teacher of the Year Grades 9^th- 12^th

Christa Phillips

Excellence in STEM Teaching Award by the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network

Carla Christian

West Tennessee Counseling Association Middle School Counselor of the Year

Liz Dias

West Tennessee Counseling Association Middle School Principal of the Year

Karen Lee

Student Representative to SCOPE conference in Nashville

TLN Update

May 15, 2017

The 110^th Session of the TN Legislature ended last week.  The 111^th Session will reconvene on January 9, 2018. 

Bill Update

- TSBA tracked 182 pieces of legislation this session.
- Forty-eight (48) of those bills will become law.
- None of the 17 bills TSBA or GMSD actively opposed became law.

Germantown Board of Education Legislative Agenda Items:

• School Vouchers - did not pass

• Repeal of Public Chapter 669 (Physical Activity) – passed

• Bidding and Sale of Surplus Property: withdrawn by sponsors after objections from the Press Association and local newspapers.
  
  

TSBA Legislation Still Viable:

• Voucher bill held over in Senate and House Finance committees

• RTI Funding: sent to the BEP Review Committee and Summer Study along with other legislation impacting the BEP.

• Use of the ACT/SAT Suite of Tests: was not presented to the subcommittee.

Discussion

• Last hours of session, the House and Senate unanimously voted to require teaching of a semester on Tennessee history in public schools

• The bill (HB1169, as amended and approved) doesn’t specify when the semester of Tennessee history teaching will occur and how it would bit into teaching of other subjects.

• House sponsor Rep. Art Swann, R-Maryville, plans to use the coming months to determine how to fit a Tennessee history requirement into students’ jam-packed schedules. There will likely be a follow-up bill next year

We will be working with Arlington Schools to schedule a Legislative breakfast in August to discuss activity in the 110^th session and items we would like to be of focus in the 111^th session.

Chairman Report May

The month of May is always a busy one. The board and district office had a retreat to discuss our district strategic plan, perform superintendent evaluation and a board self evaluation. The district and city met with SCS Superintendent Hopson to discuss an offer for the 3GS. Shelby County Schools has brought the offer forward to their Facilities Committee and we look forward for further discussion with Shelby County Schools.

Thank you to our HR department and our five schools for the school snapshots, where we opened up the schools for interested and potential teachers to come to tour our schools and visit with staff and students. Dogwood had a wonderful theme “There’s No place Like Dogwood” and HMS had a great interview team made up of students.

As the end of the school year comes, I want to thank all of our teachers for their dedication and hard work this past year not only in the classroom, but in the numerous extracurricular and athletic activities that make our district outstanding. I also want to thank our hard working district staff who go above and beyond everyday. Thank you!!

Chief Financial Officer Kevin Jones presented the Financial Reports, which included the Balance Sheet, Revenue and Expense Statement and Cafeteria Report as of 4.30.2017

We have a tradition of excellence in Germantown and it’s evidenced by the numerous achievements this year, but I think it’s also important that my staff always keep a growth mindset and that we always continue to seek opportunities to improve.

·       I begin by speaking to one of our many successes as a district.  In a well-established high school that has always enjoyed high achievement, our staff and teachers did not rest on their laurels.  They implemented new programs at the school focused around the ACT—Boot Camps, Naviance, ACT Flex periods, student tutoring—in a school wide focus on increasing students’ scores.  These plans of action are how the best get better.

·       I am sure many of you are aware that we as a District have earned the Highest ACT average in the state for the second consecutive year—and we are proud, but still striving for excellence.

·       I am even more proud of the work being done when I report to you that 228 students scored a 30 or above on the ACT.  That is a new record, and an increase of 29 students—and the scores are STILL coming in.

·       We look forward to receiving our state reports which we believe will show that our students who were scoring below 21, the qualifying score for the Hope Scholarship, has seen a vast increase as well.

·       If we are providing our high school students with post-secondary opportunities, we need to continue to offer a wide range of choices, whether that be expanding AP coursework, dual enrollment, career and technical certifications, or internships.

·       And we have seen expansions in ALL of these areas this past year.

·       With this work came several local and state accolades:

o   Memphis Business Journal recognized HHS as the Most Challenging High School

o   US News and World Report ranked HHS highest in Shelby County and #7 for public high schools

·       By these outside measures and our recent accreditation by AdvancED, I know that we are on track to become one of the BEST school districts in the nation.

·       Accolades aside, the year my staff also demonstrated a growth mindset.

·       In the foreign language department, our students took top spots for the state on the National French, German, and Spanish tests. A true testament to our excellent teaching staff.

·       Our students with disabilities have also seen new partnerships aimed at increasing their opportunities to find meaningful employment after leaving us.  The contracted partnership between Germantown Municipal Schools and Baptist Women’s Hospital is an incredible testament to the power of persistence and hard work. 

·       Outside of the high school curriculum, you are seeing increased rigor and engagement in all of our schools.

·       The expansion of Project Lead the Way, the STEM initiative, incorporates technology and engineering within our science and math classes.

·       The creation of the Jr. Honors Academy and Jr. Leadership Academy are challenging students to develop our middle school students academically as well as civically.

·       In addition to developing our students as scholars, our district has also made a commitment to developing them as good citizens.  We’ve asked our schools to ensure that EVERY student in EVERY grade level is provided an opportunity to give back to their community.  The results are astounding.  Just asking our principals to name their top two charities of choice for the school—our students and families collectively donated well over $110K this year alone for LeBonheur, St. Jude, and the American Heart Association among other opportunities that focused on collecting canned food, socks, hats, or teddy bears.  The list generated by our principals details so many wonderful experiences for our children in which they had the opportunities to serve others.  At Houston High School, they earned a collective 2,000 hours in service as catalogued by national organizations like Beta Club or NJHS.

·       This year we have advanced the Leadership Academy to really help cultivate leadership skills in its students.  We have developed a partnership with Rhodes and the University of Memphis to engage their students with our students promoting vertical leadership development  

·       As a district we are committed to developing the whole child, academically, athletically, and artistically.

·       Our orchestra program continues to grow every year—and we are extremely proud to have made a leap of faith in funding the addition of strings to our elementary schools.  It has enhanced and brought new life into the orchestra program.  And the results are ever present this year, as 39 of our students took their seats to play in All-West, or All-state, and even National orchestra groups. 

·       Those outside of our system see our students and have already begun to associate Germantown Municipal Schools with outstanding music instruction.  It proves that we are willing to provide and expand all the opportunities in our district.

·       That tradition of musical excellence, of course, continues in our highly decorated band program at the high school.  Our All-west numbers broke a NEW record, and Houston High School by far produced the highest number of participants in West TN.  This trend is also being witnessed at the middle school level, where BOTH our programs at Houston Middle and Riverdale are breaking records for students qualifying for All-West.

·       Under the new GMSD administration, we’ve seen both the choral department and the Houston High School theater department excel to greatness.  We currently have the top two choirs in the region, and the #2 best choir in the country. Next week, students from Houston High journey as a cast to the Orpheum as they’ve been nominated for 15 HSMTAs (they are like the Tony’s for Midsouth high school students).  Their spring production of 42^nd street has received MORE nominations than any other Midsouth production.

·       We have created the Fine Arts Academy this year, rounding out my original vision of smaller cohorts, or schools-within-a-school, that began years ago when as Assistant Principal of Houston High I started the Honors Academy.  Because at GMSD, we want to offer a unique and personalized experience to every student—I am excited to see what the future holds for our newest academy.

·       Another area of extra-curricular opportunity is the BEST athletic department in the area.  Ranked as the Best of the Preps for 18 consecutive years, the program is continuing to thrive this year.  All 7 fall varsity sports went to their state championships.  You simply do not find these opportunities at other public schools.

·       We have two girls’ soccer students who have graduated early and are already playing on college teams.

As I reflect on the work completed this year, I have to mention the capital improvements.  When the district began with $23 million in deferred maintenance costs, no one would expect an immediate solution.  But, my staff along with the school board created a five-year facilities strategic plan, and we have successfully reduced that list—all while maintaining a sizeable reserve from year to year.

This year the district saw some major improvements, such as

·       The completion of a state of the art facility at RES

·       Re-roofing, NEW HVAC & an energy management system at DES

·       A new Pre-school playground at DES

And then there are projects that are completed on a smaller scale that may go unnoticed, but make meaningful differences on our campuses

·       Addition of a car-rider line and reconfigured security entrance at DES

·       Expansion of modular classrooms at DES & FES

·       Adding a projector in HHS auditorium

·       Paved drive areas, addition of sidewalks at HHS for increased walkability and parking

·       Re-modeling the HHS cafeteria to food court

·       Completion of jumbo-tron at HHS, moving the former scoreboard to HMS

·       New exterior lights at FES and the addition of FES crosswalk to increase safety

·       Purchase of classroom recycling bins at all schools

I’ve touched briefly on some of the accomplishments of the year—the students, which could go on and on—but I could not end this list without mentioning our most valuable resource as a school district.  Our teachers.  You’ve just seen some examples how extraordinary our staff is during the Recognitions. 

·       2 out 6 teachers of the year award winners for the South West Core—are from our schools

·       Farmington was chosen by the Commissioner of Education, for a site visit because of their work with early literacy

·       GMSD was named Top Place to Work by the Commercial Appleal for two consecutive years

But, HOW is GMSD accomplishing that?  I’m extremely proud to tell you about some of the things being done in human resources that earn us such acclaim.  

·       We made a difficult decision to be the only municipality that has our own health insurance.  

·       That decision has resulted in no increase in health insurance costs for 3 years

·       I’m excited to announce that our account has performed so well this year that our employees will receive a Health Insurance holiday on May 31^st—adding $360 for an average enrolled family on their next paycheck

·       Our human resource department has also Expanded the new teacher development program, Blue Chips and added new recognition ceremonies; Tenure Celebration, and a Blue Chip Pinning Ceremony.

·       We have seen the recruitment of over 127 potential certificated staff on college visits

·       The expansion of our School Snapshot Events with 223 participants and day long tours for prospective teachers in hard to fill areas

The use of stakeholder input and committee work has been exemplary in Germantown schools. 

My staff has spent weeks creating and preparing for the multitude of committee events in the district:

·       School Site Selection which had two district wide surveys, two forums, and three committee meetings 

·       The Calendar Committee- which had two district wide surveys and two committee meetings

·       School Design Committee- which had one district wide survey and two committee meetings

·       Community Conversations- This pilot program engaged multiple stakeholders to provide meaningful employment for our students with disabilities.

The availability of all the documents online for these committee meetings is a testament to the transparency of our district.

We also have regular meetings with multiple stakeholder groups:

·       Monthly Principal Meetings

·       Monthly Assistant Principal Meeting

·       Regular PTA Presidents Meeting  

I am thankful for the board’s commitment to improvement and look forward to the continued success of Germantown Municipal Schools. And that concludes my Superintendent’s Report.

It is the responsibility of the Board to maintain and improve the quality of administration and instruction of our district. As part of this responsibility, the Board formally evaluates the superintendent each year.

Through the evaluation of the superintendent, the Board strives to accomplish the following:

1) Clarify for the superintendent his role as determined by the Board.

2) Clarify for all board members the role of the superintendent

3) Develop harmonious working relationships between the Board and the superintendent. and

4) Provide effective administrative leadership for the district.

The performance evaluation completed by the board consisted of two components (B and C). B is the overall board observational data in nine domains of competence. The second component of the evaluation (C) is in regard to specific objectives aligned with our strategic plan. In addition, the superintendent’s cabinet completes an evaluation.

Superintendent Manuel received a score of 4.9/5.0 from his cabinet and a 3.43/5.0 from the board that was averaged together for an overall score of 4.2/5.0. Last year’s board superintendent evaluation was 4.8/5.0 from cabinet and 4.0/5.0 from the board for an overall score 4.4/5.0.

Specific strengths from the evaluation included student achievement, staff and personnel and establishment of a strong district strategic plan. Areas to improve included informing community of the district’s vision for the strategic plan, evaluating the organizational personnel structure of the district and conflict resolution skills.

The evaluation model adopted by the school board is in alignment with the TEAM model. The rubric used the following evaluation scale:

5- Significantly above expectations 4- Above expectations 3- At expectations 2- Below expectations 1- Significantly below expectations.

Moving forward I suggest, the board complete training on the TEAM model and the scoring rubric. I believe there were misunderstandings based on reviewing the scores. As a result,  the superintendent scores were skewed.  In addition, board policy HR 5.803 states board members’ scores need to be supported with objective evidence of which none was presented.

Educational success depends on a good working relationship between the school board and the superintendent. Neither can operate effectively without support for the other. I hope – no I expect that the board will put away their political and personal differences as we move forward committed to educational excellence for our district.

The following citizens expressed their opinion on the Superintendent Evaluation and their support to the Superintendent and the District team;

- Jeanette Taylor, 7020 Country Road, 38138

- Susan Simmons, 4021 Graham Oaks Ct. 38122

- Lynda Ables, 2417 Carrollwood Lane, 38016

- Heather Fisher, 1701 Fiddlers Elbow, 38138

- Teresa Price, 3131 Saddlegait Cove, 38138

- Liz Dias, 9400 Wolf River Blvd, 38139

- Sam Shaw, 9297 Cielo Drive, 38138

- Betsy Spurlock, 8954 Green Leaves Drive, 38139

- Susan Pennington, 1828 Eagle Branch Cove, 38138

- Candace Plaisance, 1680 Rocky Hollow, 38138

- Sheila Hahn, 2964 Mallard Lane, 38138

- Joye Phipps, 5789 Bobbitt, 38134

- Aaron Henager, 9026 Lansdowne Lane, 38139

- Kim Johnsen, 2242 Otterburn Lane, 38139

- Mayor Mike Palazzolo, 2455 Arthur road, 38138

The following citizen expressed their opinion on Yearbook from Houston Middle School;

- Gary Hahn, 2964 Mallard Lane, 38138

Chairman Linda Fisher announced the following;

- 5.18.17 Houston High School Graduation

- a tentative special called meeting

The meeting was adjourned with consensus at 8:27 pm.