By Karen Kennedy
What happened: Nick Wahl gave the superintendent’s report on the district’s goals.
What it means: “Things are going as they should be,” said Wahl. He presented a student-centered matrix, noting that the board’s goals need to be in line with the state’s requirements. He also spoke about the balance between student well-being and student achievement.
What’s next: In the next principals’ meeting, they will address the issue of this balance. According to Wahl, student-centered goals will be vital in the coming years.
What happened: A tentative agreement has been reached between the administration and the members of the Bus Drivers’ Association.
What it means: There were major changes to the agreement, including a 1 percent increase to the daily rate schedule, a 1 percent increase to the hourly rates and the elimination of “step 1” in the schedule (which results in a 6-step schedule in accordance with other support staff schedules.)
What’s next: The proposed action will be voted on at the next meeting.
What happened: Proposed course changes for 2014-15 were presented by Amy Dudley.
What it means: The curriculum is reviewed annually in order to provide students with the most challenging courses of study focusing on critical thinking and problem solving. The following new courses were proposed for the high school level: International Baccalaureate Computer Science and Business & Management, Advanced Science Materials Chemistry and Hebrew II. Most notable is the new Advanced Placement Capstone Program, a pilot program developed in collaboration with Cambridge University. CHS is one of 100 schools in the country selected to participate. Proposed classes for the middle school include Digital Learning I and II, which would replace Keyboarding I and II.
What’s next: The recommendations will be voted on at the next meeting.
What happened: Results of the Literacy Program evaluation were presented by Dudley, Martha McFarland and Linda Thompson.
What it means: Carmel schools received several commendations from Advanc-ED, through their accreditation process. These commendations included: continuous learning of staff members, continuous improvements in learning systems and significant improvement in K-8 literacy achievement from 2008-2013. High school reading and writing remained constant or decreased. Critical reading scores decreased by 4.6 points (on par with the national average). Writing skills decreased by 12.6 points (quadruple the national average).
What’s next: The board recommends increasing amount of time that students spend reading and writing each day and providing more collaborative and active engagement.