hard deadlines

PSD IT Director Rose Muller (r) presents to finance subcommittee

The Portsmouth School Committee is developing its budget for 2011, and at the finance subcommittee meeting this week, members heard an encouraging report from the IT department: a request that features no increase in budget while allocating more spending for technology to support instruction. How did they do it?

According to the presentation by IT Director Rose Muller, (available on the PSD web site) through smarter software choices and staff training.

The proposed budget shaves more than $6K off licensing fees in the operational budget. "We're making use of open source," said Muller. For those not familiar, "open source" is software made freely available and supported by a community of developers. The name refers to the raw code for the application (what programmers call the "source") being freely available and modifiable.

In addition, the budget reduces the allocation for purchased services — outside IT consulting — by $20K. Muller said this was accomplished through targeted professional development for the IT staff which allowed them to handle a wider range of support without calling on outside help.

That's $26K that can go to things like projectors, interactive whiteboards, document cameras, and communications. "As teachers work to differentiate instruction, they need more technology in the classroom," said Muller in an e-mail.

Muller also reviewed the IT department's operations for the finance subcommittee. The four-person staff (Muller, a network administrator, a systems administrator, and a computer support specialist, assisted by two college interns) deal with an average of 320 tech requests a month, and support a network of 1,100 workstations and 75 printers, used by 3,800 students, faculty, and staff. The total yearly outlay, fully loaded (including benefits) is $295K.

Even counting the part-time interns, that's a workstation support ratio of around 250:1, which would be considered very lean in private-sector IT. Kudos to Muller and the team — not only are they a providing efficient, cost-effective services, they have shown a commitment to continuous improvement that will pay off for our kids. Job well done.

There were not a lot of citizens at the finance meeting — it was just this reporter and Town Councilor Keith Hamilton. If you want to hear the nitty-gritty on the school budget, these meetings are a great opportunity. I'll try to cover as many as I can.

Future Finance Subcommittee meetings (5-7pm unless noted)
Mon, Feb. 22 – Elementary Schools (Town Hall – Planning Board Room) 5-6PM
Wed, Feb. 24 – Middle School/High School/Strategic Plan/BEP (PHS Library)
Wed, March 3 – Teaching-Learning/Student Support/Other Budget Lines (PHS Library)
Wed, March 10 – Salary/Benefits  (PHS Library)
Tue, March 16 – Full Budget/Projections (Town Hall)
Mon, March 22 – If needed  (PHS Library)

Full disclosure: I am a volunteer member of the district technology committee, and I yammer incessantly about open source.

Portsmouth School Committee member Marge Levesque sent me a letter about what happened at the meeting Tuesday night:

The February 9 Portsmouth School Committee meeting was a combination of promise and necessity.

We were treated to some of our students success: This time, it was the Middle School Robotics team and the Middle School Music. Award winners who got well-deserved recognition from the committee. Two students who organized a fund raiser for the children of Haiti were also recognized.

The Middle School staff also updated the committee on the new advisory system now in full swing. Every student in the Middle school (just as in the High School) is assigned to a small group with a staff advisor that meets at least twice a week. This provides the student an informal setting with a trusted adult.

Now, the bad news. Because of Rhode Island law, school committees must notify anyone whose position might possibly be eliminated, and that notification has to take place before March 1. The problem is the school, town and state budget are all fluid until June. So last night, to keep our budget options open, we sent layoff notices to about thirty teachers. We truly hope to call all the teachers back but we do realize that in this economy, it is possible that we will lose a few. This is a painful process for the teachers and the committee.

The next item is a little more positive. The committee passed the school facilities plan, agreeing to send it to the RI Department of Education. This action does not marry us to this particular plan nor will it cost anyone money for several years. School building is a long process with many opportunities for review and community input (and, of course, any eventual bond would need to be put before the voters.) This is perhaps step one out of dozens of steps. The vote was 3 to 2 with Dick Carpenter, Mike Buddemeyer and myself approving. Cynthia Perrotti and Angela Volpicelli voted against. Sylvia Wedge and Marilyn King were not able to attend but sent written statements in support of the motion.

Now I feel compelled to give my opinion. By state regulation, the committee needed to have a formal plan on the upkeep and future needs of our buildings. For Portsmouth that was accomplished by Mike Buddemeyer who chaired both the facilities committee. The committees meet more than 40 times in the past two years and did at least one walk though of each school. All these meeting were posted and open to the interested public. There were also two documents produced, one presented to the public a year ago. If any members of the committee did not have the information they needed to vote, they should have attended the facilities meetings and read the report.

And I want to add a word about the report. The consulting firm that the facilities committee selected, RGB, has experience with the laws, regulations, and special rules that the Department of Education imposes on school building. What might seem very simple to someone not familiar with these regulations can actually be quite complex, and we hired RGB for their expertise in this area. There may be some in the public -- and there is even at least on the committee -- who question the numbers in the report. We had Steven Hughes from RGB at a prior school committee meeting to answer questions that the committee might have had, and the full report is available on the School Department's web site.
— Marge Levesque

Editorial note: I was working and unable to make the meeting last night, but according to a published report in today's Newport Daily News, committee member Cynthia Perrotti took issue with at least one of the numbers in the report, characterizing it as "bloated beyond all reason or comprehension," a claim disputed by committee chair Buddemeyer.

Full disclosure: I am an appointed member of the facilities committee.

Visit the PSD site to download.

Last night's Portsmouth school committee workshop on the proposed facilities plan saw lots of questions but no vote, though chair Dick Carpender did promise to ask for a vote at the scheduled meeting next Tuesday.

"While RIDE (the Rhode Island Department of Education) will ultimately decide," said facilities subcommittee chair Mike Buddemeyer, "I'm looking for support to move forward." He urged the committee to "get something into the hopper" at RIDE, given the extended timeframe for consideration and construction, estimated by RGB to take 2.5-3 years.

School committee members heard a brief presentation of the recommended options from consultant Steven Hughes of Robinson Green Beretta (RGB). Two options were highlighted by Buddemeyer as more likely possibilities: the previous frontrunner, "Option 2" which would build a new consolidated elementary to replace Hathaway and Elmhurst, and "Option 3" which would refurbish Hathaway and Melville to retain 2 out of the 3 neighborhood elementaries. In all options, additional high-priority work needs to be done at the middle school, high school, and administration building.

Buddemeyer indicated that the facilities committee had preferred Option 2 by simple majority vote, with Option 3 close behind. The RGB consultant stressed that the decision-making had been up to the group. "Mike's committee went through this independently," said Hughes. "They did not have the 'hired guns' telling them what to do."

One factor which made Option 3 more appealing last night, Hughes said, was a letter from the Navy indicating a willingness to discuss land bordering the Melville school. One of the issues with expanding Melville identified in the report is space constraints, since the building now occupies much of the available parcel.

The questions from the school committee reflected the reality that these proposals have been in front of them for a year now. (See coverage from January, 2009). But several members still found reasons to question the whole effort.

Angela Volpicelli asked "How would the facilities plan increase student achievement." Superintendent Susan Lusi patiently explained that while no correlation with test scores could be inferred, "if kids and teachers feel better about their environment, they bring a better attitude." Let me put this bluntly: kids learn better in buildings that don't suck. As the chair of the health and wellness subcommittee, I would think Ms. Volpicelli would be more familiar with the effects of indoor air quality, ergonomics, and appropriate task lighting.

Marilyn King's concern was about borrowing, and she used the Option 2 cost of $51M, tacked on $5M for debt service, and said "That's gonna be $56M" and that it would require "an 11% property tax increase."

"How did you get 11%?" said Carpender. I have the same question. Let's assume a 20-year term, and use her own number of $56M. That would require a yearly payback of $2.8M. According to numbers I have checked with the Town Finance department, each $50 increase for the average homeowner yields $610K. To pay the bond, the yearly apportionment for an average resident owning a $300K home would be $225. On a current tax bill of $3,255, that is a 7% increase.

I'm not saying Option 2 is the right choice, and I'm not saying that this is an insignificant amount; it's well worth having a discussion about. But come on — $18 bucks a month for new schools? Is that really so unreasonable?

Cynthia Perrotti asked a good question about transportation costs given reconfigured school locations.

Carpender reiterated the need to get into RIDE's pipeline and cautioned the committee against "paralysis by analysis" and that submitting the plan would not commit the town, since RIDE might well modify the recommendation, and there would be time to investigate costs fully during the year-long approval process. "There's a whole bunch of questions that need to be answered," said Carpender, "But we need to have adequate and efficient space for the students."

Lusi reminded the committee that only because of a temporary stay in fire-code compliance, due to sunset in January of 2011, had needed work even been deferred this year. "The lack of a decision is, in fact, a decision," said Lusi. "By not deciding, you are committing the community to the fire code work. It's not the case that we can keep students and teachers there with no investment."

Carpender said he planned to put the matter to a vote at next Tuesday's meeting.

Full disclosure: I am an appointed member of the Facilities Committee, and have been working on this plan for the last 18 months. So, yes, I have a perspective.

Commissioner Deborah Gist with students in Bob Rutkiewicz's physics class

For four hours yesterday, Rhode Island Commissioner of Education Deborah Gist went to school in Portsmouth.

Gist, appointed earlier this year, spent the morning at Portsmouth high school with Supt. Susan Lusi and principal Bob Littlefield as her guides, going to classes and listening to groups of students, faculty, administrators, and elected officials as part of her plan to get to know all of the state's schools.

"I spent last spring looking at a lot of data, and it was so frustrating to not be able to imagine the community as I was reading about it," said Gist. She has now visited more than 20 districts, she said, to create a "human connection."

"We really appreciate her willingness to come and listen," said Lusi. "And she really did spend the vast majority of her time listening."

"Before today," said Littlefield, "Teachers did not feel a connection with the decision makers." Referring to Gist's reform agenda, he hoped participants will now see that "it came from an extensive dialog with teachers, students, and the community."

After visiting classes in social studies, AP English, and physics, Gist met with a group including Rep. Amy Rice and school committee members Dick Carpender, Sylvia Wedge, and Cynthia Perrotti.

"There is nothing more important than the teacher in the classroom," Gist said in response to a question from Perrotti about what school committees could do to help drive student performance. "Think about putting systems in place around teacher quality. Things that support and reward excellent teaching, develop those that are good, and move everyone else out." Gist referrred — as she consistently did with each group — to a one-pager on RIDE's five priorities, available on their Web site.

Gist also announced that there would be a policy memo distributed to superintendents shortly with a new RIDE requirement that "placement of teachers needs to be in the best interest of students," and that districts with strict seniority systems would need to revise their approaches.

Asked by Carpender about funding and S3050, Gist spoke about her commitment to work with the general assembly on the whole question of a "funding system," including "equitable and effective investments" and also transparency and return on investment.

Commissioner Deborah Gist with students in Marilyn Thompson's social studies class

Next, the commissioner engaged a group of 20 PHS students in an open discussion about their positive and negative experiences at the school. This reporter was impressed by the poise of the students and their articulate questions and insights, which ranged from grading consistency and PowerPoint ("It always seems like we're just doing PowerPoint") to the characteristics of good teachers and the desire to have communities of inquiry within classrooms. And at least one school policy may change coming out of today — when the students expressed frustration at lack of access to their interim grades on iParent, both Littlefield and Lusi noted that this was the first year of the program and supported this modification. "Don't tell your teachers," said Littlefield, "But I want you to be able to see your grades [on your phone]."

Gist expressed strong support for technology. "We need to make sure that we're connecting media and technology into teaching and learning," she said. "You communicate with each other so differently, and sometimes I feel like we bring you to school and unplug you."

Given that need for schools to raise their game in technology, I asked Gist afterward if she was considering certification for IT, which Rhode Island teachers do not currently need. Gist said she was "not interested in adding certifications" since the system currently has so many, but that she was "open" to the notion if it was needed to place or keep specifically qualified teachers in the classroom. Lusi observed that the forthcoming policy memo on teacher placements could help address this concern and Gist agreed, adding, "we need to work to make certification easier" for teachers with specific skill sets, "but not in the sense of lowering the bar."

After meeting with students, Gist spent time with several groups of teachers and staff. She was frank in admitting some of RIDE's past issues. "Policies created at the state level sometimes don't do the things that they were intended to do," said Gist, "But policy makers never look back." As someone who spent time as a classroom teacher, she said, "I have been on the receiving end," and she promised change.

Commissioner Gist, Supt. Lusi, and Principal Littlefield speak with teachers

When one foreign language teacher complained that she was denied professional development credits for taking a course in another country (at her own expense) Gist expressed surprise and support. "I'm going to work to fix the system," she said, and offered a direct route for teachers to resolve any policy problems, "In the meantime, send me an e-mail."

She referred again to the RIDE five priorities, with the central goal of student achievement. "Everything needs to be supporting that," she said, or RIDE would stop doing it.

Some of the directions Gist and her team are exploring are high-tech, like virtual courses to allow students across the state to take topics they are interested in but districts can't offer. Another, aimed a teacher improvement, is a proposed Web library of excellent teachers and model lessons, which Gist said would be an ideal project under sought-after Federal "Race to the Top" funding."

Other reform efforts are lower-tech but equally dramatic, like educator evaluation standards for the state, which Gist said have been drafted and are currently moving through hearings at RIDE. Gist seeks to ensure that every teacher is observed every year and that there is what we in the private sector would call "360-degree" feedback from students, parents, and colleagues.

"I feel it's very important to connect student achievement to all our accountability systems: my job, RIDE, the district, and teachers," said Gist. But she was clear that this did not just mean standardized tests: "It's really important to look at growth, over multiple years," said Gist, "because there are so many variables." Aiming for this balance, she said, is what underlies the NECAP test only requiring partial proficiency.

Gist expressed strong support for literacy programs. "There is nothing more important than students being able to read at grade level in the primary grades," she said. And, as one might expect from someone who began their career in literacy education at the elementary level, she argued that intervention needs to begin early. "The push for proficiency has to start in pre-K."

"Everything I do," said Gist, "Is through the lens of a classroom teacher."

In a nearly 3-hour session tonight, the Portsmouth School Committee approved by a 4-3 vote a strategic plan for the district reflecting broad community input gathered and refined in a 10-month process. The final vote was a bipartisan 4-3, as Republican Mike Buddemeyer joined Democrats Dick Carpender, Sylvia Wedge, and Marge Levesque in supporting the plan. Democrats Angela Volpicelli and Marilyn King joined the unaffiliated (and Town-Council-appointed) Cynthia Perrotti in voting no.

There was almost an hour of debate, the majority of which was spent attempting to conflate the overall plan with one program — the social and emotional competence curriculum called Open Circle. There was very little substantive discussion of the overarching goals of the strategic plan, a fact pointed out by Future Search participant Maureen Kielbasa

"The strategic plan is what we're voting on tonight," said Kielbasa, noting that programs like Open Circle are "action plans" for implementing the strategic vision. As a Future Search participant, she said, "It's not within my realm to address these action plans — that should be up to teachers and administrators."

There was an album-length screed from PCC director Kathy Melvin about "slick education marketers" pushing "ineptly designed programs" "preparing students to become third-class citizens of the world." Offsetting this was a wealth of material culled from over 800 peer-reviewed journal articles cited by Future search participant Len Katzman which all showed not only efficacy in social learning, but also correlation with significant academic improvements. Elmhurst Principal Bob Ettinger and teacher Val Seveney offered first-hand testimony about impact in Portsmouth's classrooms, while noting that claims Open Circle would require extra personnel could not be based on the program already rolled out to dozens of teachers.

And eventually, the committee did get down to the vote. On the WHOLE strategic plan.

Perrotti said that while she "liked several parts" she wanted more "focus on outcomes" and was concerned about whether it "complied with the law." Volpicelli said, "Maybe what I should have done was abstain," adding that she felt that she "needed more time." King echoed this sentiment saying there was "more I need to research on."

FYI: The 36-page Strategic Plan was distributed to the School Committee in advance of the September 8 meeting.

-- no 30 --

Editorial note: There was a whole lot more of the talking. I'll try to juice it down tomorrow.

Resources:
Portsmouth School District Strategic Plan
Future Search report
Prior coverage of the Future Search (day 1, day 2, students, strategic plan draft)
Read more about Open Circle

Full Disclosure: I was a participant in the Future Search workshop, and I want to thank the more than 60 community members, parents, administration, teachers, elected officials, students, business leaders, and community organizations that participated in shaping this vision for the future of our schools. I deeply respect the time and thought you — we — all put into this, and I know that many others do as well. And if there are 3 people on the school committee who don't — well, that's what elections are for.

At Tuesday night's meeting of the Portsmouth School Committee, the recently developed Strategic Plan will be voted on, and everyone with an interest in the Portsmouth schools — especially those 60+ members of the community who participated in the Future Search conference on which is is based — should make a point of attending, because elements of the plan have been called into question, and it is reasonable to assume that there will be opposition at the meeting.

Kathy Melvin, who is listed as a Director of Portsmouth Concerned Citizens (PCC), Inc. on their latest filing with the RI Secretary of State, has a letter in this week's Sakonnet Times which attacks a part of the plan which references the Open Circle program, a social-emotional skills curriculum:

"In short, this is not an academic program, there is no metric for measuring success, it will once again take teachers out of the classroom and disrupt stability, and it is highly expensive, requiring additional personnel."
— Melvin, letter to Sakonnet Times

What does this have to do with the Strategic Plan, you might ask? Good question. One of the overarching themes in the Strategic Plan is educating the whole child, and Open Circle is one of the programs identified for helping to promote shared language around behavior and engage students actively in creating a positive environment in the classroom.

I asked a ten-year-old student at Hathaway School (I'll call him 'Jack') to describe Open Circle, which has been used at the school for a couple of years now (and unless I missed something in the budget, without any additional personnel.)

"It teaches you how to act [in school] so you can learn to your fullest possible extent," said Jack. He explained that at one recent session, his class had collaboratively agreed on a gesture that they would all recognize and respect when a teacher or other student asked them to quiet down. In the external world, we would call this "generating buy-in by having having participants own the decision," and it is best practice.

Are the opponents of a strategic plan for Portsmouth's schools really so desperate that they are willing to attack a program aimed at creating a positive learning environment?

Apparently so. Please join me in expressing support for the strategic plan on Tuesday. And maybe we can all agree to make little "L" shapes on our forehead when folks from the PCC get up to talk.

Resources:
Portsmouth School District Strategic Plan
Future Search report
Prior coverage of the Future Search (day 1, day 2, students, strategic plan draft)
Read more about Open Circle

Full Disclosure: I was a participant in the Future Search and the proud parent of a 10-year-old who understands the value of social and emotional learning conversations in school.

RI Ethics Commission Attorney Jason Gramitt addresses officials

The Portsmouth Town Council chambers were packed tonight, as over 60 elected and appointed officials and town employees came out for a presentation and Q&A session with RI Ethics Commission attorney Jason Gramitt. Councilors Peter McIntyre, Keith Hamilton, and Jim Seveney, as well as school committee member Cynthia Perrotti attended, as well as members of many appointed boards and commissions.

Gramitt complimented the town on the turnout. "I was at a municipality last night where there were 8 people," he said. "It means a lot that this many people take the extra time."

He also reassured the officials in the audience that Portsmouth does well in this area. "I'm a proud resident of Island Park, and our Executive Director, Kent Willever, is a resident of Portsmouth. You always deliver. We breathe a sigh of relief when we don't have to worry about our own town."

But that didn't mean he was letting anybody off the hook: "I assume that if you came here tonight, you have at least one question."

For the first part of the hour-long session, Gramitt provided an overview of the Ethics Commission, established by constitutional amendment in 1986 with jurisdiction over all public employees and a mandate to address conflicts of interest and financial disclosure.

Gramitt stressed that it is not the conflict between public duties and private life which is the problem. "We expect everyone to have them. What violates the code of ethics is when you have that conflict of interest and don't do anything about it."

He stepped through a series of tests. Is it "reasonably forseeable" that
1. A decision I am helping to make,
2. Will result in a financial benefit or detriment,
3. To: A) Me, B) A member of my family, C) My outside employer, or D) My business associate
4. Or, even if no financial impact, is a family member a party to, or participant in, the matter being discussed.

"There is no such thing as a conflict of interest that is too small," Gramitt said. And family members, under the new nepotism rules, go out to first cousin.

Business associates means people with active or forseeable relationships. "That lawyer who represented so-and-so a couple of years ago," said Gramitt, wouldn't count. But membership on boards — even of nonprofit associations — would. He gave the example of a Little League officer also on the School Committee who might run into a conflict if they were asked to provide a field at a reduced rate.

And while there are cases where private interest and public duty might seem to conflict — for example, voting on tax rates — there is a "class exception" where the official or relative is a member of a large class and receives no particular benefit.

And what do you do when you find you have a conflict? Recuse yourself, and do it right up front. "The moment the matter is called," said Gramitt, "Not when the discussion is over and it's time for a vote."

He discussed the best practices around recusal. "I'll tell you what the law requires," he said, "But because this is my town, I'm going to give you advice on how to do it better than that." Once you recuse, he said, you are a member of the public, so if it's an executive session you need to leave. If it's open, you're allowed to be in the room. But as to staying on the dais, "There's nothing in the code that says you must get up from that chair," Gramitt said. "But, would you allow a member of the public to sit in an empty chair during a Council session? Best practice is to get up from the chair and sit in the audience with the rest of the public."

He suggested you might even want to leave the room, "If it's a hotly contested issue and you can't control yourself."

Gramitt talks with Town Administrator Bob Driscoll and Council President Pete McIntyre

Conflicts many times, said Gramitt, are not clear cut. "Think of football field with the 50-yard line separating ethical from unethical behavior. People sometimes think they can march right up to the 50 yard line," Gramitt said. "You really need to go back 10 yards on each side. It's a big gray zone. That's where all those questions are going to fall." And the best advice: "Stay out of the zone. Hold yourself to that higher standard."

The evening wrapped up with a discussion of gift regulations (no cash, no gifts over $25 or $75 worth in a calendar year from any interested parties) and a question-and-answer session.

Resources:
RI Ethics Commission Web site
Phone number: (401) 222.3790
See previous coverage from March, 2007.