(12/2021) November saw a number of ceremonies in the school system celebrating Veterans Day. We appreciate all Veterans, especially those that work for FCPS. The Board of Education also wishes best of luck to all of the high school fall sports teams as they head into the playoffs and hopes that everyone was able to enjoy Thanksgiving with loved ones.
At our September 8 meeting, the Board followed Dr. Alban’s recommendation and gave conditional approval to the proposed charter school from the Sabillasville community. Additionally, we needed to gather more information on which entity had the power to grant conversion charter status, at the request of the new charter school committee. In the past, a conversion charter had only been used to convert a poor performing regular public school into a public charter school.
These schools often become what is called operator run, which put the administration in the hands of formal business groups, as opposed to community or parent groups as is the case with the Sabillasville school. Once we learned that low performance was no longer a necessary criterion and that our Board had the authority to confer conversion status, it paved the way for us to put it on our agenda. The process would allow the new charter school to simply occupy its current building. Otherwise, they would have to find a new location since having a facility was one of the conditions of its approval.
At our meeting on November 22, we did approve the Sabillasville Environmental School as a conversion charter. In December they will appear before the Board to go through their charter plan and negotiate the details. The other major condition for approval was reaching an enrollment of 161 students its first year to make the school financially viable. Currently, they have 191 interested.
This may require a lottery to determine which students will attend. Current students will automatically be a part of the new charter school if they wish. Going forth, founders’ children and siblings of current attendees will be a part of the school community if they elect this option. As we do for all the schools in our system, the Board looks forward to the success of this new and unique charter.
Also at our November 22 meeting, our Board spent several hours problem solving and making motions to address workload and staffing issues. Previously, we had become acutely aware of major issues affecting school systems and businesses everywhere, and at our November 10 meeting we voted to hold an emergency meeting on November 15 to try to find some solutions. On the day after our regular meeting, staff put out surveys to eleven different job titles in our system. They then compiled the results from thousands of responses over the weekend so we would have data and information directly from some of the affected employees. The issues were sorted into three main categories: time, resources, and money. Staff prepared a PowerPoint for the meeting with suggestions and dollar amounts based on the surveys.
Some of the highlights of the motions passed by the Board are listed below. Under time we voted to close offices to the public over winter and spring breaks to help clerical and other 12-month staff work without interruptions. We added in three 2-hour early or late student arrivals for school staff on January 13, February 22, and March 25 to give teachers extra time for planning and grading. The system had sent out a message to all teachers dialing back much of the current professional development for teachers as well as system initiatives. The Board reaffirmed these steps by assuring all professional development (PD) and extra meetings will be limited, with the exceptions of teacher requested PD or those necessary to meet state requirements such as the Accelerated Learning Process (ALP), which will be capped at twice a month.
In the area of resources, we voted to create a centralized volunteer coordinator so the system can tap into the benevolence of our Frederick County citizens without adding work to already stressed school staff. The plan is to recruit a retired administrator. The cost for this was minimal.
Finally, items that required spending was, not surprisingly, the area with the most motions passed. While we did rack up quite a total of dollars committed, the system has realized a large sum of money due to salary savings. Normally, positions of employees that retire at a higher rate are filled by new employees at beginning rates. This year there are so many unfilled positions, those funds are just sitting there. We voted for the following allocations: retention incentives for bus drivers and food nutrition service workers; cease charging applicants for fingerprinting; $15 minimum wage (up from $13.47); teachers and administrators who substitute during the school day will be paid at per diem rate; all substitutes (regular, long-term, and resident) will increase $3 per hour. Regular subs were at $17 and will now be at $20.
Overall, we tried to create time and recruit personnel. Staff is being pulled to substitute, which doesn’t allow them the time to do their regular job. Many areas are short-staffed, which puts an additional burden on current employees. Everyone needs the chance to be able to do their job and catch their breath once in a while. It was a hopeful beginning, but we are not finished.
We still have many parents attending our meetings to give public comment on masks, vaccinations, and COVID testing. The State Board of Education held a special meeting on Tuesday, November 16 to hear testimony from a variety of stakeholders on their mask mandate. That mandate runs out on February 25, but they had promised to revisit the matter before then. During the four plus hour meeting, the State Board heard from parents, school board members, state health officials, the president of MSEA, the president of Free State PTA, and other interested parties on the topic. They declared up front that no decision would be made that day. The next time they meet is Wednesday, December 1. Their website is Marylandpublicschools.org and click on the State Board tab. You will see their 2021 Meeting Schedule. We will all be standing by for what the State Board decides.
The Board of Education wishes happy holidays to all as we look forward to an improved 2022.
