WASHINGTON
STATE SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND
BOARD
OF TRUSTEES
Minutes from Board of Trustees Meeting
March 12-13, 2004
Board Members
Participating:
Jerry Farley, Cindy Roney,
Board Members Absent: Joe Fram, Denise Mackenstadt, and Annabelle
Fitts.
Ex-Officio Members
Participating:
Ex-Officio Members
Absent: Bonda Albers (Washington Federation of State
Employees Local #1225.
March
12, 2004 - 7:07 p.m. – 8:35 p.m.
The
meeting was called to order by Terry at 7:07 p.m.
Department
Updates:
Department updates and reports were given by program
supervisors (full reports are attached).
Mary commented that the Operating Supplemental Budget
was released today and the Distance Learning request was not included. Dr. Stenehjem commented that the auditor’s
office was extremely impressed with the new systems and procedures that were
put in place by Mary for WSSB’s Business Office.
South Carolina, Kentucky, and North Dakota have
contacted WSSB to gain more information on our Braille Access Center’s (BAC) Women’s
Prison collaborative effort. Kay
commented that she has ordered textbooks nationwide and the best Braille they
have received has come from the BAC in Washington.
Terry asked if the Clark
County PUD has a system set up for the solar power that is generated. Rob stated they do not have a set system to
track that, however WSSB does have a system in place and is receiving credit
for the power generated from the Bonneville Environmental Foundation.
Dr. Stenehjem stated that WSSB has been meeting with
architects regarding a new Fit For Life Building, (replacement building for Kennedy). The building will be a one-story building that
will house: a pool, bleachers, climbing
wall, Recreation, Arts/Crafts, snack bar, etc.
This building would be located where the track is and a parking lot
would be put in where the current building is
located. Discussion
occurred about staff and students having access to various parts of the
building for health and wellness. This
is being planned into the new facility, hopefully for staff access as a
wellness club with a membership fee, which could pay for student jobs to help
operate this type of program. Considering
we need to continue and use the Kennedy Building for the next few years, the
architect and engineers are developing a plan for temporary bracing that would
permit us to use the building and protect students and staff in the event of an
earthquake.
Jerry stated he has a
concern about paying employees on a 9-month basis as proposed with the new HR
2005 Civil Service Reform. Mary said
that is one of the reasons why Cherie is included in the change process. WSSB’s preference would be to continue to pay
over a 12 month process like we currently do, but the state payroll system will
need to be able to do this. Jerry asked
what happens to insurance benefits, etc. Mary mentioned that if payments were
not withheld over a 12 month basis, employees would get the same funding, but
need to plan ahead and make these payments.
The amount of pay that each receives would not change, but how the pay
outs occurred would be different. Mary
feels it is probably going to be a programming issue and we need to make
sure we put our input in so that it does not change.
The meeting adjourned at 8:35 p.m. An Executive Session meeting was called and
adjourned at 8:50 p.m.
March
13, 2004 - 8:40 a.m. – 1:10 p.m.
Terry called the meeting to order at 8:40 a.m. Dr. Stenehjem said that Joe is in
rehabilitation and recovering nicely after his surgery.
Old Business
Approval of the Board of Trustees meeting minutes of
January 13, 2004. Chuck moved to approve
the minutes, Jerry seconded the motion. The
minutes were approved unanimously.
New
Business:
1. Accreditation: Dr. Stenehjem reviewed the process for accreditation. Jim Whitford, representative from NAAS, wants
to focus only on four areas. Therefore,
WSSB will be holding an expanded accreditation process for
1½ additional days to review the Outreach, Residential, etc. component. Dr. Stenehjem feels we have a strong
accreditation team. Accreditation will
begin on March 21, with a tour of WSSB. On
March 22, the NAAS process will be reviewed with Mr. Jim Whitford and
specialists. On March 23 Outreach,
Buildings and Grounds, Residential, etc. will be reviewed. An exit interview will be held on March
24. Dr. Stenehjem reviewed the accreditation
manual with the group which included: success
stories, partnerships, school report card, ratings from staff on programs, nine
characteristics of a successful school, math, reading, compensatory skills,
technology, parent involvement, quality surveys, balanced scorecard, etc. Dr. Stenehjem stated that after the last
accreditation the only area that we have not completed is the acquisition of a
Volunteer Coordinator (this is still a goal).
Discussion was held regarding the Police Department moving onto campus into
the Ahlsten building. Due to this
partnership many opportunities have come of this including the Search, Rescue,
and Recovery Dive Team are utilizing our pool for training and they have now
offered to teach students and staff a SCUBA class.
Cindy asked what happened to the Program Focus
that Craig was working on last year.
Theresa said that a lot of the program focus was delineated within the
accreditation booklet and also the teachers have been separated into committees
and have been refining them. Cindy asked
if the Board’s Education Committee should be involved
in the discussion. Dr. Stenehjem felt
they needed to be part of the process.
The accreditation team that will be on the campus March 21-23 are here
to validate the self-study and provide feedback to the school in a process of
continuous school improvement.
Theresa
Tate, Robb Peck, Stefan Hudson (student) and Dr. Stenehjem testified regarding
House Bill 2704 (Alternative Learning Bill).
Stefan was the star of the testimony.
Stefan logged onto the Digital Learning Commons and showed the group how
he participates in the classes. The
concern was with the guidelines within the state, i.e. if students from one
district participate in a distance learning class in another city, how would
funding be managed.
2. Future Direction
Planning:
Dr. Stenehjem stated that every two years, the
school reviews the Strategic Plan.
During the process, it was suggested that the school look deeper into
short-term placement. Dr. Stenehjem
stated that a number of items that were suggested during the meeting will be
included in the objectives’ document which is used as a budgetary document. Dr. Stenehjem reviewed the document with the
board.
Regionalization: In the last two years, an emphasis was put on
regionalization in the Spokane area.
This was started, however all staff members in this process, including
Special Education Directors, etc. either moved or retired and the process did
not move forward.
Academic Achievement: The area of academic achievement in the local
school districts was changed due to the fact that WSSB has little or no ability
to control over student success their local school district. Mike reiterated that WSSB has to realize that
students are responsible for their own destiny and there are many times we
cannot control what happens in their lives.
Best Practices: A wording change was included to clarify items
borrowed from the Instructional Resource Center (IRC) (“adaptive” technology). Discussion
was held regarding the fee for services at the IRC. An option for listing equipment in districts
was suggested. This could be tied into
the IRC whereby districts list excess inventory and other districts can take
advantage of the equipment that is no longer used. Dr. Stenehjem stated there is also
legislation whereby districts can give equipment to students. Cindy asked about the database capability to
see what is checked out to students.
A goal was added for
providing training to parents through the Distance Learning program. Kathleen
has been working on a parent survey whereby part of the survey will include how
parents want information, i.e. print, Digital Learning, board meetings across
the state, etc. Cindy B. offered to put
a link on their website and newsletter for a parent listserv. Dr. Stenehjem said that Michael Hooks has
done an outstanding job on our website with the listing of resources, etc. Another area discussed at the meeting is the
transition back to the district from WSSB.
Public Awareness was a
huge area of discussion at the meeting.
A new goal was added regarding an awareness campaign regarding WSSB
statewide. Terry feels this is could be
like an Outreach program for awareness.
Dr. Stenehjem said that on cable Channel 29 there is information
regarding WSSB, and this would be ideal to get to other parts of the
state.
Employee involvement in
civic and consumer organizations: Cindy B. asked if our students are involved
in organizations, etc. Scouting, etc.
Cindy B. felt her involvement in the Rainbow Girls was critical to successful
relationships with sighted peers. Mike
feels it is difficult because students go home on the
weekends. Cindy R. feels that by
fostering relationships with sighted peers it lends to a better transition
period for students who leave WSSB. WSSB
students have been involved in outside groups such as the scouts, etc. This is something that we encourage and could
possibly do a better job with.
Safe Environment: This is a major issue in the Capital Project
budget request process. This will be in
place from 2004-2014 however it is reviewed every two years for updates.
Wish List: At the end of the Strategic Plan meeting a
wish list was put together that included such items as: program expansion,
different service options, additional personnel, Distance Learning classes,
partnering with DSB for satellite braille transcription offices, educating
legislators regarding WSSB, develop social groups within outlying areas, separate
residence for LIFTT program (Independent Living), class for transition back to
public schools, hiring a Public Relations Officer, become a private non-profit
that is state-funded, and create satellite schools for the blind.
Dr.
Stenehjem will be meeting with a representative from the Gibney
Foundation. There are three siblings
that operate the Gibney Foundation, established in 1992.
They only provide grants to those in their communities and 50% has to be
given to visually impaired/blind kids. This Foundation grants approximately
$1,000,000 per year. Dr. Stenehjem has
provided information regarding Camp Magruder, Summer School
options, Technology adaptive devices, and many more options. Terry asked if the School for the Blind Foundation
has a grant writer. Currently, this is
Dr. Stenehjem, Janet and others we can get to help. Dr. Stenehjem said that the WSB Foundation
is currently looking for an Executive Director.
The Foundation will be interviewing two
candidates in the next two weeks. The Foundation is also applying for a grant
from the Murdock Foundation for seed money for two years to fund a position as
Executive Director and provide development funding. These funds will be utilized along with other
funding in support of the Foundation.
Within two years, the board believes the foundation could be
self-supporting.
3. Committee Reports:
o
WASA/WSSDA
Legislative Committee: Mike Freeman, Dr.
Stenehjem, Denise Colley, and Dee Amundsen attended this year’s conference. Mike said that the great success was that the
wording was changed so that the design and possible redesign of Kennedy did
finally get into legislation. Dr. Stenehjem stated that the group met with legislators and
OFM analysts. Mike said that it is
worthwhile keeping the school in the legislative conscientiousness. Terry said that the Board is representing
their congressional districts and feels it is important that the board be
visible in Olympia. Denise felt it was a
good opportunity and learning experience.
Dr. Stenehjem stated that WSSB received a $25,000 budget cut in the area
of travel and equipment as part of the Senate Budget. Dr. Stenehjem will be reviewing the budget that
has passed the house and the senate to see if the reductions still remain. If so, the school will be requesting a line
item veto from the Governor’s office.
o
Building
Grounds Committee: Jerry, Terry, Dr.
Stenehjem, and Rob Tracey toured the grounds on March 12. Jerry said this was his first time to see the
Ogden Resource Center completed, Irwin’s remodel, and the reconstruction of the
front of Old Main and was very impressed with the way the school looks. The committee toured Kennedy and an explanation
was given on the safety mechanisms that will be put
in place for safety measures. Track
replacement and tree removal was discussed.
Discussion was held regarding radon in the basement of one of the
cottages. Rob Tracey has two options for
removal of this. The basement of the cottage has not been used since the radon
readings were made a few years ago.
Radon levels within the cottage 1st floor are below the
limits for occupancy. All the other
buildings on the campus are good with the exception of the boiler house, which
is seldom occupied. WSSB is working to
lower the limits in these two areas.
Ex-Officio
Reports:
·
Theresa
stated that the school held a pep assembly for students. Vaughn gave a report on Space Camp, the
powerlifters gave a presentation on their successes, and the goalball team spoke
of their recent success on their trip to Michigan where they did very
well. Theresa said they are continuing
to move along with Distance Learning.
Theresa said her course she is taking is very intense. Cindy R. asked who is teaching the course. Theresa said the Virtual High School in Georgia. Kathleen stated that Vaughn is taking a class
in the History of Pop Music through Distance Learning. The Distance Learning program has opened up
many opportunities for WSSB students.
Pat Wilber is teaching a literacy class for students with reading
disabilities (reading and writing).
·
Mike
reported that the Spring Convention is next weekend. The National convention is in Atlanta this
summer (June 29-July 5). The fall
convention will be at the Governor’s House in Olympia. Mike encouraged folks to look at the website
for more information.
·
Cindy
reported that she is the new President of WCB.
The membership is up 56 new members in 2004 with 308 total members. The 4th Annual leadership training will be
held April 30-May 1, with a board meeting on May 2 in Olympia at the Red Lion. The
National convention is July 3-10 in Birmingham, Alabama. The state convention will be November 11-13,
in Bellingham. Online registration will
be available in August. Cindy requested
that wcbinfo.org be added to our website.
Cindy said they are working again with Alan Garrels, DSB to do something
at their convention for youth.
·
Kathleen
announced that Vaughn was the recipient for the VoiceNote from the Ridgefield
Lions Club. Kathleen is participating in
the accreditation process. The survey Kathleen
would like to create would be a survey of needs to parents on campus and
off-campus through the Outreach program.
Kathleen would like to have an array of questions ranging in ages and
also all programs. Theresa suggested including
a stamped envelope. Terry and Mike both
feel that the personal phone call would be appreciated by the parents.
Superintendent’s Report
The Superintendent’s Report is attached to the
minutes. Dr. Stenehjem reported that the
next Board meeting will be held on May 5, 2004. Dr. Stenehjem will be out of town; therefore
Craig Meador will lead the conference call.
Dr. Stenehjem reviewed the calendar.
Jerry suggested moving the March board meeting to March 18, which would
allow for more staff involvement in the
AER convention, which is to take place the 11 and 12th of March.
Miscellaneous
2004-2005
School Year Calendar. Terry asked
everyone to look at the draft school year calendar. Jerry asked if there were any teacher
in-service days. Dr. Stenehjem said yes,
March 11, and we are hoping that AER uses that day for their conference. Dr. Stenehjem stated that by starting later
in September it may be helpful due to construction projects this summer.
The
next Board of Trustees meeting will be held via conference call on May 5, 2004
at 7:30 p.m.
There
being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 1:10 p.m.
Terry Robertson, Chair Dean O.
Stenehjem, Ed.D.
Superintendent
March 2004
Human
Resources
Merit
System Rules: The Department of Personnel is now holding
final public meetings regarding changes to Merit System rules. The Director of DOP will be officially
adopting the rules (after any last minute changes as a result of the public
meetings) effective July 1, 2004 for implementation effective July 1,
2005. Merit system rules will impact
those employees not covered by a collective bargaining agreement. Information regarding all the DOP proposals
is available online at http:hr.dop.wa.gov/hrreform/default.htm
Collective
Bargaining:
The Labor Relations Office of OFM and the Washington Federation of State
Employees have begun the process of negotiating the statewide Master Agreement
as part of HR 2005. Both Bonda Albers,
Residential Life Counselor at WSSB and local Federation President and I are
each on the negotiation teams involved in the negotiation process.
New HRMS
System: The state is in the process of designing and
implementing a new HR/Payroll computer system as a part of HR 2005. The current state computer system would not
be able to handle all the changes resulting from HR 2005. Each agency was required to designate an
agency “Change Agent” to act as the liaison between the agency and the people
at DOP and the Department of Information Systems who are in charge of the new
computer system. Originally, WSSB was
told that someone from the small agency relations group at DOP would act as our
change agent. After looking at all the
unique requirements of our agency (i.e., Teacher’s paid according to the
Vancouver School District pay schedule, 9 month employees who are paid out over
12 months etc.) WSSB was informed in January that we would have to designate an
internal change agent after all. I have
taken on the role of change agent and have been able to complete the agency
work plan for the new computer system as well as all of the inventories and
templates requested thus far to ensure proper implementation. This will be an
on-going process over the next 18 months until the new system is officially
launched. I want to give a big thank you to Tarisa Tognetti in the Business
Office, and Danya Breckons, IT Manager for all their help with this project. It
would have been impossible to have gotten all this completed by the deadline
without their assistance.
Education
Distance
Learning: We
continue to move forward with new offerings for teachers throughout our
state. Jennifer Hervey has begun the
Braille Music program. Students/teachers
on-site and throughout the state are participating. In addition there are two sites in Oregon
that have joined in. This is creating
some challenges as we trying to deliver material over two separate lines, K-20,
ISP and ISND. Robb Peck and Ed Lukowski
are trying to map out the necessary steps to make this happen. Our goal is to produce a step by step guide
so that any staff member could step into the lab and make it functional.
Other
items:
We are examining some software
that will allow us to deliver instruction in a static form by housing
pre-taught lessons on a server.
Participants would then be given a password and allow to access
previously taught programs at their leisure.
This would also allow us to expand instruction to anyone owning a home
computer.
Paul Baldwin and Lisa
Hodge have completed the development of an On-line abacus course that will be
taking place in late April or Early May.
Theresa Tate is
completing a teacher training program that will allow her to be a resident
teacher through Virtual High School. VHS is an on-line school housed in
Georgia.
Summer
school: Program
offerings are available on the Website.
This year’s theme ties in with the Olympics. The focus will be on compensatory skills.
Sports Camp will occur the week prior to
Summer School. This venture will be
funded through WSSB and student tuition.
Hewlett
Packard Grant a.k.a Virtual Paul: WSSB
and Paul Baldwin have been given a $16,000 grant to purchase software and
hardware to be placed around the state allowing students to join in his daily
science lessons. Virtual Paul is a
reality.
VoiceNote
and GPS: We
have begun to use the new GPS systems with the VoiceNote. We had some difficulty at first until Bruce
M. found out that Vancouver is not actually located in Washington. According to satellites Vancouver is part of
Oregon. Now that we know this we are beginning to introduce students to the
wonders of information on-demand.
Accreditation: The
notebooks are complete, the stage is set and now we wait. The process is scheduled for March 21-23. We
have an all star staff that is set to review our material and visit our
school.
Buildings
& Grounds
1.
We
are progressing on upcoming capital projects for this summer with blueprints
available as of last week. New projects include:
a.
Remodel
of Ahlsten Cottage for occupation by Vancouver City police detectives
b.
Relocation
of the track in preparation for construction of a new gym
c.
Relocation
and change of the transformer on the west end of campus
d.
Renovation
of Sherman auditorium stage and HVAC system
e.
Adding
chiller lines to the ORC air handling unit
f.
Construction
of a courtyard in the open area behind the school library
g.
Construction
of a covered walkway between wings of the school
h.
Upgrading
of fence system on the north end of campus
i.
Addition
of a mezzanine in the warehouse for additional storage
j.
New
boilers in both the boiler house and Irwin
2.
Contractors
walk thru for the above projects is March 11 and bid opening is scheduled for
March 25.
3.
The
work study program that provided an assistant for landscape and grounds keeping
ended and has not been continued. We have, however, been able to utilize
volunteer help to accomplish several tasks including detailing campus vehicles,
painting and sign making. This help accounts for about 16 hours a week of
additional help.
4.
The
new custodial supervisor has settled into his new position and has been
reviewing the tools and chemicals we have been using. As a result of his
research, we have changed several of our chemicals for safety but been able to
keep or improve on the cleaning and disinfecting capability. One tool he was
able to purchase, replaced ones that were originally bought in the 1970’s, and
is able to cut in half the man hours required to do the same job as the older
units.
5.
Last
years use of natural gas revealed close to a 5% decrease in consumption
(through December, 2003).
6.
We
are currently reviewing qualifications for new vehicles for the upcoming school
year and recently retired the 1984 Suburban. With the expansion of the state
vehicle list to include hybrids, we can consider both the Honda Civic and
Toyota Prius. Both of these vehicles can help us reduce operating costs
significantly.
7.
The
first bay in the warehouse has finally been remodeled and is serving as an
automotive service bay. We have been able to reduce overhead by changing oil as
well as timing belts in house.
Business
Office
1. Budget
a. Operating
·
Ended
January with a positive balance of $102,000.
February books close March 15. We
will be working on a back-up Spending Plan (purchases that would help with
operating cos
·
The
operating supplemental request for $200,000 (biennial) to fund the Distance
Learning Coordinator was included in the Governor’s budget recommendations but
as of yet has not made it in neither the House or Senate budge
·
Outreach
department is doing well. There was a
question last year about whether the department was self supporting. Projections indicate they will end the year
in the black.
·
Our
strategic plan is part of the budgeting process and is due May 1, 2004. We have begun working on it and held a
planning session with stakeholders on February 25. The remaining par
b. Capital
Re-appropriated Building
Preservation-Old Main, Kennedy, Irwin
·
Fries
Auditorium-We are still negotiating close-out (liquidated damages).
Re-appropriated Campus
Preservation-13th Street Project Improvemen
·
This
project has been closed out.
Re-appropriated
Ahlsten/Ogden Resource Center
·
This
project has been closed out. We have a balance of approximately $186,000 that
will be used towards remodeling the Ahlsten Center for occupancy by the Police
Department. Bids on this project have
been called for and will be opened on March 25, 2004.
Re-appropriated Distance
Learning Project/Irwin
·
This
project is in the final stages of completion but has not been officially
closed.
New Appropriation-Old
Main, Kennedy, Dry, Irwin
·
OFM,
after many revisions to our supplemental request, finally recommended to the
legislature that the language be amended to allow for “predesign, design, and
construction cos
New Appropriation-Campus
Preservation
·
The
advertisement for bids has gone out on this project. The bid is combining projec
·
Boiler
Room/Electric Vault Replacement Project:
We initially received partial funding for this project of $120,000 until
energy conservation study was conducted.
After several conversations, it was determined the project was not large
enough to warrant the study. The full
$668,000 in funding will be released.
2.
Staffing: Jessica Sydnor has been hired to replace
3.
Inventory
Control: We continue to work on
inventory control. We have reconciled what has been physically counted to
what’s in the system and are making a second physical sweep to locate missing
inventory.
4.
Audit: Our audit has been concluded and we received
a “clean” audit. There were no
reportable conditions.
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