The agenda for tonight's meeting was pretty short and the actual length of the meeting was also a little on the short side. Only one community member attended the meeting. All others in attendance were either board members or school employees.
ITEMS OF INTEREST:
1. During the Board Member Comments portion of the meeting Sandy Sprouse shared a concern regarding someone who had stolen items from a Christmas light display during the holidays. She stated that a military flag and other items were taken. She expressed her frustration over this issue and referred to the person who stole the items as a "low-life" and stated that she hopes that people will come forward to identify the individual responsible.
2. Superintendent's Report - Mr. Olney talked about a number of items including: Parent Project (begins January 16 and classes run for twelve weeks), Sex Education (students in grades six through ten received relevant instruction this year and the same grades will be involved next year), Assessment/Testing (CST is being phased out, with only a few tests being given this year, and the Smarter Balanced testing program is being phased in, with a test run being conducted this year during April), and Prop 39 (energy efficiency). Mr. Olney also talked about Governor Brown's proposed budget. More tax revenue than expected was collected last year. This will speed up the the rate at which districts are reimbursed for certain expenditures and it will also speed up the implementation of the Local Control Funding Formula program. Additionally, funds will be set aside in reserve as per requirements of Proposition 98 (aka, Classroom Instructional Improvement and Accountability Act of 1988).
3. Public Comments - Jayana Ledbetter shared her observations regarding the high school basketball program with the board. She said that it is not fair to the coach or the kids for a single coach to be fully responsible for both the boys and the girls teams. She stated that it appears as if the coach has been set up for failure. She characterized the teams as disorganized. In fact, she said that many people in the community assert that the teams are "so disorganized that it's painful to watch" and that many people in the community are making negative comments about the coach behind his back. Board President Garrison thanked Ms. Ledbetter for her comments and expressed the hope that other people would share their observations regarding the basketball season with the board.
4. Policies and Procedures - A first reading of proposed alterations to the following Board Policy items was conducted: Williams Uniform Complaint Procedures, Single Plan for Student Achievement, School Site Councils/Single Plan for Student Achievement, Local Control and Accountability Plan, and Accountability. Several changes were proposed and in order for changes to Board Policy to be implemented they must be first announced at one board meeting so that the public is made aware of the proposed changes. Then at the following regular board meeting (a month later) the policies may be voted upon once everyone has had a chance to inspect the proposed changes and share any concerns. The board will conduct a special workshop on January 27 (Monday) from 4-7 p.m. in order to discuss the proposed changes.
NEXT REGULAR BOARD MEETING: February 13, 2014 at 6 p.m.