By Hallie Richwine

The Silver Consolidated Schools Regular Board Meeting took place Tuesday, January 16, 2018, in the Silver Schools Administration Building. Board President Mike McMillan and Board Members Patrick Cohn, Michelle Diaz, Eddie Flores attended as well as Superintendent Audie Brown. Vice President and Secretary Ashley Montenegro was absent.

Brown updated the board on the flu outbreak at Cliff Schools and stated that Dean Spurgeon informed him of the amount of children affected by the stomach illness. With more than half of the student body ill, both the Christmas program and regular K-6 classes were cancelled shortly before the winter break and the outbreak was reported to the state. Over the break the school was thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and staff is remaining extra diligent.

Brown also reported the professional development for teachers on January 8 and 9 with the Solution Tree Company as a success. Staff was split into two groups, K-6 and 7-12, and they had many professional conversations about response to intervention. Teachers told Brown they were satisfied with the development opportunity and said they could immediately implement strategies that were discussed, some saying they had a new enthusiasm for work and teaching.

Brown said regardless of what is heard about the school system, this professional development was in response to the needs identified by the teachers themselves. “They identify the needs, they are true professionals and I praise them - as a result we met with the coaches and coordinators and developed a way to address the needs that they identified.”

McMillan asked if this particular professional development course was a stepping stone for this same group to come back to follow-up or if it was a standalone course.

“It was a combination. Teachers will implement steps and strategies, and when presenters come back they will determine next steps and build on that,” Brown said.

Associate Superintendent Candy Milam reported that as of the 80-day mark enrollment is down approximately 180 students, which is potentially a lot of money budget-wise. Milam also explained the district report card. Every year the Public Education Department publishes statistics for each school district, to be published by the local education administration. Soon the newspaper will publish the breakdown for public consumption. Milam said the report includes breakdowns by gender, ethnicity, graduation fulfillment, college credit accumulation, and more.

“It’s nice to see on paper. When we see this, we are seeing generalized breakdowns, is this a tool we can use to improve curriculum?” Diaz asked.

Milam explained this is a component of the principals’ jobs, to break down the data and target areas of need.

Cohn reported on behalf of the finance sub-committee and said the reports are well within the range of the proposed budget and are very stable. He said he is excited about the legislative session and hopes the school district receives generous funding.

McMillan had nothing to report, but asked that the board consider the days of the regular meetings. They currently occur on the third Tuesday of the month. If there is interest in changing the day it will be put on a future agenda. Diaz and Flores said Tuesday is fine however Wednesday would be better. McMillan agreed Wednesday would be favorable since athletic events occur on Tuesdays. The item will appear on the agenda for next month to vote on changing the meeting day.

McMillan reminded the board that the board retreat happens this Saturday at the Administration Building, facilitated by Hugh Prather. Dress will be casual and lunch will be brought in.

“Does this count toward our board training hours?” asked Diaz.

McMillan said Prather submits the hours to the New Mexico School Board Association and they will get some if not all of their hours.

McMillan also said with the legislative session beginning today he heard part of the governor’s State of the State address and heard about more money being awarded to education. He said the school district could use the funds especially considering enrollment being down from a budget perspective. McMillan said the governor mentioned a lot of education initiatives and that it would be interesting to see what comes out of final legislation.

Cohn welcomed everyone back from the holiday break and said he was pleased to hear the professional development went so well. He also looks forward to hearing if the district gets the funds that are projected.

Diaz reiterated the positive feedback on the latest professional development.

Flores agreed and said he heard that teachers feel excited and enthused. He said the board needs to keep fueling that fire so they keep seeing improvements. Flores also said he drafted a letter regarding the parking lot situation at Silver High School and believes there is still a safety issue there.

Flores also indicated that school was in session on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, when banks were closed and Western New Mexico University had no classes. He was concerned that the district show respect and observe that day rather than trade it for a day off later in the year.

McMillan addressed the issue of the calendar and said the calendar process is usually completed by a committee and the board makes the final decision to accept it, so it is their duty to review the dates before doing so.

Under Action Items, the board accepted a Budget Adjustment Request to allow for the award of $11,000 from the New Mexico Autism fund. This is to be used for professional development and supplies. Funds also allow for the attendance to the Star Autism Conference in May.

The board also approved the district report card from the 2016-2017 school year. As discussed earlier in the meeting, it will be published in the newspaper and on the district web page.

During open public comments Charlotte McGaughey spoke to the board, sharing concern about changing from a five-day school week to a four-day school week. McGaughey said even though it looks desirable the impact on the students will be great. Small children are not always able to focus for a longer day, and she asked that the board consider those children who do not have parental support for that extra day out of class.

McMillan announced the next Regular Meeting of the Silver Consolidated School Board happens February 20, 2018.