2021-22 SLT Minutes
To access minutes from past meetings click 2020-21 SLT Minutes
June 16, 2022
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Anna Janash
Kim Isserlis
Elisabeth Stephens
Tristram Carver
Kim Brooks
Sara Thorne
Olivia Poor
Call to Order
Review and Approve May's Minutes
The minutes were approved.
Principal’s Report
Budget
Significant budget cuts for the city has been in the news. PS 29 got it’s budget from the city about 1.5 wks ago. Cut 2 million dollars. Biggest issue is dealing with the deficit. June 21st is the next budget mtg. Predictions were made for PS 29 budget but more will be known after that mtg.
This is the biggest budget cut in past 10 years. However, the past few years are difficult to assess due to pandemic changes. Covid relief funds are gone now.
As part of the school budget, each child enrolled brings in about $4000 from the city. It is projected that PS 29 will have 70 more students join the school (from grades 1-5) compared to the number of students from last year, but numbers are still fluctuating.
Lots of pressure on principals and schools to bring down their own deficits. PS 29 doesn’t receive Title 1 funds. Some concerns but with privilege of the partnership with PTA, PS 29 should be okay. PS 29 is asking for funds from the PTA and may be using excess funds, which is not commonly used.
Cannot use PTA funds to pay for teachers but can use PTA funds for out of state teachers OOC – but there is a tax. Good to use PTA funds for OTPS – no tax
Want to keep class size down but may need to increase class size due to budget cuts – may need to consolidate classes - expect the highest class size will be 27 kids. The NY class size bill has passed but is not in effect until Governor signs it into law. Then the city would have until 2027 to put it in place fully. May not yet be in effect this fall.
There are other ways the school receives funding from the city - eg. new IEP’s, ICT class, SETTS. Lots of funds given retroactively or may take time – ie. in middle of the year. But PS29 needs to fund lots of these things from the start of the year. The fund cushion in middle of the year is helpful.
CEP
The CEP is the blueprint for the school – a certain set of meaningful goals but not necessarily all of the goals of PS 29. These are the goals PS 29 will be working on this fall.
1) Early Childhood Reading and literacy goals for K-1st grade – hope to improve data and goals for 2023. Looking at the individual child and the overall picture - socio-emotional support, reading progression over time, math, and other grades.
2) The city is making a push for phonics and phonological learning. PS 29 has been doing this but is on board with improving.
3) Fact fluency - It was a goal in 2019/20. Pandemic put some of that progress and implementation on hold. This past year was used to make up some of the deficits from 20/21 year, which was part remote. Now is good time to get back on track with our goals in fluency work. Next year plans – more workshops, supports for families at home, math team night.
4) Socio-emotional support - The school has previous data from 2021. There is a new survey; the school needs to look at that data next. Restorative work has been done. There was the launch of affinity groups this year - LGBTQ group, BIPOC group, Neurodivergent Learners group. About 45% of 4th and 5th graders expressed some interest in being part of these groups.
Discussion of Parts 2 and 3 of Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
-Robust discussion about the author’s thoughts on ‘the Dream,” his time in Paris, thought on race perceived and defined, and messages to his son.
Adjournment
-Have a good summer. Next meeting in the fall.
May 19, 2022
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Anna Janash
Elisabeth Stephens
Tristram Carver
Clavel Lazarre
Sara Thorne
Call to Order
Review and Approve April's Minutes
The minutes were approved.
Principal’s Report
- CEC15 Town Hall meeting is this Friday evening. There are 32 districts in NYC. Ours is District 15; current Superintendent is Anita Skop. Agenda of this meeting includes discussing Candidates for District 15 superintendent, Mayoral Control of the budget, and class size. Parent participation is encouraged.
- Currently doing reflections on this past year and looking towards goals for next year.
- “Class creator” computer system was used to help set up class groups last year but still needs personal staff input.
- Class size for next year depends on enrollment. Enrollment will likely be higher next year. Different for each grade.
- Budget - still awaiting information from the city.
- Specialty classes - there have been 2 science teachers in the past but the school had only one during the pandemic. PS29 has been looking to hire a second for the past year; will continue it’s search.
- Drama share - in past the 5th grade had a big joint production. This year they did 5 separate mini productions, partly due to Covid issues. Some pros and cons that may help to shape plans for next year.
- Kick Butts Day yesterday - nice successful event after pandemic again but some slight differences from previous event.
- Looking at CEP goals and overall goals for next year will be plan for June.
Mayor's Dyslexia/Direct Phonics Instruction Initiative
- Mayor announced initiative for early assessment for dyslexia. Not much specific information has been relayed to the school yet.
- One member brought up NYT article about Mayor’s program from 5/18/22
- Acadience screeners will still be in place next year.
- Initiative will have schools use phonics-based curricula.
- One curriculum option is Fundations, which PS 29 already uses in K-2.
- Orton -Gillingham approach is part of this initiative. PS29 already uses this, particularly with SETTS and learning diversity curriculums.
- Heggerty Reading Curriculum, a Phonemic Awareness Curriculum, is used at PS 29.
- Teacher’s College is what PS 29 uses for reading and writing.
- Schools can help assess for learning difficulties but cannot make a diagnosis of conditions like dyslexia and ADHD because it is a medical diagnosis.
- Early Reading is very important. But this can be more complicated in reality than it may appear in the news. Some messaging may be confusing for the public.
- PS29 already trained in a lot of the recommended curricula and doing well with it’s programs but they can build on it and work more in K-2 with decodable educational programs.
Concerns regarding lunch food issues
- One member raised concerns about lunch - eg. availability of food, running out of food (mainly by last lunch period), kids being hungry by the end of the day.
- There are still some supply issues related to pandemic.
- Healthy food initiatives may not be accepted well by some kids yet.
- Some rules are present - eg. not allowed to have seconds unless the child drops their tray; not allowed to mix some menu items, can only have 3 items.
- Salad bar is now open and can be had with any menu item.
- Discussed looking in to some other non-dairy options.
- Administration will do some investigation of lunch.
Discussion of part 1 of Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Remuneration Paper
- There is a stipend of $300 for being on SLT. It comes out of the school budget. In the past, parents often give this money back to the school by sending an email advising this. More information about this and how to do it if the parent decides will be forthcoming.
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
- CEP goals
- Discuss part 2 and 3 of Between the World and Me
Adjournment
April 28, 2022
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Brooks
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Olivia Poor
Elisabeth Stephens
Tristram Carver
Dawn Pender
Call to Order
Review and Approve March's Minutes
The minutes were approved.
Principal’s Report
- K Admissions process - recent zone change was implemented. Pre-K moving to K - no issues. Enrollment - no huge shift in terms of numbers from last year, still 5 Kindergarten classes. All pretty stable.
- Concerns about the school budget. Big issue - DOE budget details will be delayed this year (possibly July/ Aug vs May/June in previous year). Makes it very challenging to plan for allocation of money and staffing. Currently trying to assess other variables - eg. what kids are returning. Will need to plan for different budget scenarios.
- Schools were previously given extra funds for smaller classes and social distancing but this funding will decrease and plans for social distancing will lessen now.
- PEP last meeting update - did not vote in favor of the latest formula for Fair Student Funding, vote will be delayed. Some of the present concerns - currently there is less autonomy for Principals, difficult for schools that have staff who have worked a long time. Discussed at the PEP mtg - Mayoral control and Chancellor’s concerns that the formula will be delayed and will affect budget for schools.
- Math State Tests were administered this week on Tuesday and Wednesday. Process was seamless and smooth. Halee Hochman, coordinator of the administrations, did an excellent job at organizing and running. The principal noted that anxiety and stress were not significant; a good trend for PS 29.
- Chancellors Day in June - a day of planning for staff, day off for kids. Interesting time planning for this as we are heading out of the pandemic and head toward normalcy.
- Returning from spring break, we have 18 cases of COVID. More cases but not as severe illness (flu symptoms or less). PS 29 is working on navigating this new phase [COVID being more endemic].
- Many other notable activities coming up - eg. 5th grade play, Shakespeare event for 4th grade, other fun family activities and opening doors up more.
- DOE Gifted and Talented Program (G&T) - Carranza tried to dismantle it due to demographic concerns and association with systemic racism. DOE is getting away from testing and moving toward teacher recommendation after K entry point. Next step is using report card grades in the top 10% to get an invitation to apply to the G&T and then be part of that lottery. DOE suggested having a G&T for each district but discussions are continuing. What this means for PS 29 - notifying parents of 2nd grade about the availability of this option to apply for G&T.
Discussion of part 1 of Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Members shared their enjoyment of the book - beautiful writing. Discussions were had on the historical pieces, different outlook of what it is like “to inhabit a black body,” the idea of race, the fear associated with growing up as a Black man, “the Dream” and what it means to whom.
Committee Updates
-Will discuss next meeting
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
- Discuss Part 2 of Between the World and Me.
- Feel free to send topic requests via email.
Adjournment
March 17, 2022
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Brooks
Kim Isserlis
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Olivia Poor
Elisabeth Stephens
Tristram Carver
Sara Thorne
Introduced Trisham Carver who will replace Cara Turnbull
- Review and Approve February's Minutes
The minutes were approved
-Things are opening up cautiously with more opportunities to get together.
- Author’s visit by Rebecca Stead - 5th graders read her books across all the classrooms. Author spoke in the auditorium as an in-person visit (poignant since it is exactly 2 yrs since NYC schools shut down).
Other upcoming activities - Ballroom share, 4th grade improv share.
For the future - thinking about trips, 5th grade celebratory opportunities.
-Affinity groups - BiPoc and LGBTQ+ community discussions
-Current thoughts with CEC - thinking ahead to next year for funding and budget, class size considerations, enrollment predicts funds and budget, will be surveying who at PS 29 is returning next year. Hoping to hire an additional science teacher; currently have 1 science teacher for all grades but have had 2 in the past.
-Discussed State Tests - Education Action Committee addresses this topic
- Healthy Relationship Seminar Focus (connected to CEP goal)
-Has been a goal for SLT over the past few years. Some examples are Digital citizenship, managing screen time, Round Tables, Social Emotional Learning
-Health Educator, Ashleigh Petillo from Packer, will talk at the PTA meeting March 17th and to 5th grade class in early April.
- Call to Action 2022- Ways SLT can voice concern regarding issues related to education including proposed budget and mayoral control
-Mayor Adams proposed budget cuts from the education budget - still up for vote.
-Effects of the pandemic are still happening and there is still much transition, which can affect the budget. “Held Harmless” feature has been present in the past couple years due to pandemic regarding owing funds back to the city and being held accountable if enrollment is low, but this may end.
-Transitional aid.
-Charter schools - currently a cap on the number of charter schools that can be opened, but this may change.
- Discussed thoughts on writing a letter to CEC by SLT about some of these concerns.
-Mayoral control of DOE - approval of extending mayoral control is up for debate vs District/ CEC/ school board/ smaller community making the decisions
-IDEA Committee - Launched Affinity Groups this past week - students were excited. Meeting of IDEA committee after to debrief and discuss next steps - eg. how to maintain the Affinity Groups as student led with ideas driven by them, how to manage size (possible break out groups), 4th and 5th grade only for now.
-Learning Support Committee - neurodiversity week, videos for teachers to share with their classes next week, resources for teachers
-Service committee - may try to bring this committee back as a separate one
-Discussions about getting more parent involvement with the committees
- Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
- Select reading for next meeting
Between the World and Me by Ta Nehisi Coats - author and journalist, wrote for The Atlantic, wrote Black Panther for Marvel Comics.
- Plan to do Part 1 for April and Part 2 for May
February 17, 2022
In attendance:
Kim Brooks
Kim Isserlis
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Olivia Poor
Elisabeth Stephens
Cara Turnbull
Sara Thorne
Agenda
- Call to Order
- Review and Approve January Minutes
The minutes were approved.
- Health Relationship Seminar Focus (connected to CEP goal)
- Discussion of White Supremacy Culture Article
- Continued with discussion of this article that was started last meeting
- Several characteristics - members picked some and discussed
- Question asked - Do we see elements of white supremacy culture in PS 29’s school or community? If yes, which? Where/ how do they show up?
Examples of characteristics discussed - sense of urgency, perfectionism, only one right way, power hoarding.
Brought up aspects of privilege, luxury of time, amount of money.
Contemplated the pause of Covid and how it impacted us and our thinking and allowed us time to reflect. Discussed bringing joy back to the school and learning after Covid but re-evaluate goals. Reflected on proceeding in a thoughtful and intentional way in the future and taking time to re-evaluate. Consider changing some of the focus of the PTA meeting to be more inclusive, casual, engaged and accessible..
Principal’s Report
- Code Blue Training in CPR and AED done for Principal and some other staff (team of 12) - recertification done every other year
- Letter distributed from Admin about Affinity Groups (LGBTQ+, BiPOC, etc) to 4th and 5th grade students - supported by staff equity committee. Several students expressed interest. Letter shared with the entire school by PC by email.
- Several ways PS 29 is engaging this Black History Month - couple examples
- School-wide read-aloud - Stacey’s Extraordinary Words - good having school participate and discuss across grades
- 5th grade will watch “Hidden Figures”
- Looking for ways to honor our 5th graders and celebrate their last year - considering bringing back the newspaper
- Covid testing - now testing 57 kids per week - improvement over previous number of approx 10/ wk)
- Two test kits will go out with each family tomorrow for parents to test their kids prior to returning to school at the end of mid-winter recess
- Testing van on Feb 27th just after break for the community organized by PTA
- Covid positive numbers continuing to go down - 4 cases this week compared to 30’s during Omicron surge around winter break
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
Select reading for next meeting
Adjournment
January 20th, 2022
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Isserlis
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Matt McIntyre
Sara Thorne
Olivia Poor
Elisabeth Stephens
- Call to Order
- Review and Approve December Minutes
- The minutes were approved.
- IDEA committee members will speak at tonight’s PTA meeting about how to talk with children about race.
- Thinking about Black History Month, schoolwide read alouds, and launching conversations about race through books.
- Open houses took place - good turnout.
- We have received projections from DOE about what they anticipate our enrollment to be for next year. Estimating that our enrollment will decrease by between 50-100.
- When Kindergarten applications are in, they may increase their projection for us, depending on how many applicants there are.
- Our zone will also shrink related to the new rezoning.
- Covid updates: before break we had nearly 150 students absent (out of 750). Today that number was down to 43 (94% attendance) so the spike seems to be abating.
- This has been a very difficult time and families have been forced to make very difficult decisions about whether or not to send their children to school.
- Things seem to be improving - our collaborations have started up again, Kindergarten is doing yoga and 5th graders have begun ballroom dance.
- We have a new custodial engineer. He will do a walkthrough of the building soon to determine the needs for repairs.
- We raised some of these needs to our representative at the CEC:
- Auditorium upgrades
- Bathroom upgrades
- New boiler system
- Air conditioning in the cafeteria
- Some of these items, like air conditioning, need to be done through grants rather than SCA.
- Other ways we can fund these projects include city council grants, Brooklyn Borough president’s office grants.
- A member asked if the new custodial engineer could give a sense of the costs for certain projects, so that the grants committee knows how much it would need to ask for from a grant.
- The principal and other staff members shared the school’s CEP goals for math, ELA, and supportive environment.
- The math goal focuses on increasing retention of math content related to the pivotal standards in Grades 3-5 through the implementation of a “spiral review.”
- The ELA goals focus on increasing literacy for our ENL students.
- The supportive environment goal focuses on discipline being applied fairly and restorative practices.
- The second round of MAP growth and Acadience assessments is currently taking place. This will take place from now through February 11th.
- Discussion of White Supremacy Culture Article
- Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
December 16th, 2021
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Isserlis
Clavel Lazarre
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Kim Van Duzer
Kim Brooks
Matt McIntyre
Sara Thorne
Olivia Poor
- Call to Order
- Review and Approve November Minutes
The minutes were approved.
- Open House held last week via zoom. Next one is in Jan. Nice number in attendance. Good having fifth grade tour guides. Zoned admissions for K. Re-zone of sub-district after PS 32 expansion for Fall 2022 (Involved following schools zones - PS 32, 38, 29, 58, 261, 15, 676). ~100 seats zoned K, ~25 seats (approx 30%) prioritized for unzoned diversity criteria group - ELL, free/reduced lunch (FRL), temporary housing (STH). There were discussions about how we communicate these changes and spread the information to those inside and outside our school zone. Awaiting some guidance from DOE.
- Covid Cases in the community are rising significantly - omicron variant. At home tests are not official with the DOE but help with intervention. Test + Trace investigating cases. Positive note - lots of our kids are vaccinated - 70%. But many tricky and complicated scenarios - eg. was there exposure, infectious period, do the vaccinated need to be quarantined? Discussed communication and messaging about Covid to the PS 29 community. Sending out an FAQ with accurate updated information was suggested. Another suggestion was to recommend testing before starting school in Jan. Can bring up that these are recommendations from the SLT discussion and that keeping school open for all is the main goal.
- Collaborations: Yoga for Pre-K started today. Parents/ caregivers who participate followed covid protocols/ health screenings. Grade 5 - ballroom dance in Jan. Chess for 3rd started. 1st and 4th grades will have Improv Collaboration. 4th will start after vacation. Nice to bring back some of the things that were done before and to find collaborations for all the grades.
- IDEA - Discussed trial and verdicts of Kyle Rittenhouse, Ahmaud Arbery - complex, multi-layered, race important component. For January PTA mtg, will have discussion on proactive and reactive practices. Revisited having a book of the month - perhaps a neurodiversity book for January. Discussed having some different books for different grade bands.
- EAC - met and discussed class size and strategies with UFT to decrease size. Going to meet in Jan and continue with the next steps.
- Wellness- Super Science Saturday - Planning our 100 year anniversary, considering doing a timeline of the last 100 yrs, possibly tie in how another pandemic (Spanish flu) was 100 yrs ago.
- Learning Support - discussed ways to support teachers and staff, try to get speakers and set up events like we used to have in the past. Discussed how pandemic has affected special needs children but can tie in how these may be similar to issues in the gen ed population too.
- Recap of District SLT Training - several SLT members attended. We can discuss more next month.
- Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting - Plan to discuss 15 Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture more - will send a better link for the site.
- Adjournment
Click here to access meeting note : 2021-2022 PS 29 SLT Minutes
Click here to access SLT Bylaws.
Dates for Future Meetings (subject to change)
- January 20th
- February 17th
- March 17th
- April 28th
- May 19th
- June 16th
November 18th, 2021
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Isserlis
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Cara Turnbull
Elisabeth Stephens
Kim Van Duzer
Kim Brooks
Matt McIntyre
Sara Thorne
Olivia Poor
Review and Approve October Minutes
- The minutes were approved.
New email address for SLT - slt@ps29bk.org
Principal’s Report
- Covid cases - spike in NYC area, 2 positive cases at PS 29, some partial quarantines. Encouraging vaccination. Confident about our policies at PS 29. Masking policy is working. Good outdoor policy currently, looking towards discussing policies and guidance for shifts in the winter months. Taking good note of contacts for test and trace. Confident about no spread in the school.
- Vaccination Pop Up
First Pop-Up - Monday November 8th - experimental process and short notice from DOE but very successful. Not as many doses as we liked. We were more prepared for 2nd pop-up yesterday.
One member stated we raised $5400 from referrals from the city for PS 29, cap is $20K from city, can set up a reminder and clarification on how to keep getting referrals for the first vaccine.
Another member suggested possibly getting a Covid vaccine van for adult boosters to come to Eat Pie & Shop.
Another member asked – can the 2nd dose be done at PS 29 and how to make sure the child’s record is complete. No official information at this time except for recommending getting the 2nd dose at your pediatrician. Follow-up guidance will be sent out by the parent coordinator once we know.
Three screeners from DOE for PS29 - Acadience, MAP, SEL - members sharing thoughts on this process. A member shared a possible move toward getting more general parent thoughts and involvement.
Successful community building outdoor event from 8:00 – 8:30 am Wed., Nov 10th.
- Opportunities to Build Community
Eat Pie & Shop PTA event coming soon.
One FALP so far - 5th grade. Other grades scheduled.
Committee Updates
- Reflect on Co-Chair Committee Meeting
Principal had a meeting with committee co-chairs to discuss the plan for the year and vision of our school. Service and Equity - no longer a separate committee, discussed how they are embedded and threaded through everything.
Questions were brought up about where some of the events fit in and for what committee. Wellness has a lot of parts, can reflect on how to approach this later - what to separate or keep together.
Meeting of Youth Equity Congress last week. 16 students discussing equity and social justice, reading This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Ann Jewell, 4th and 5th graders took part in circle talk and wrote about reflections. Suggestion to start a BIPOC group.
Parents’ meeting- lots of new parents, one suggestion was to have annual practical workshop on raising a race conscious child in proactive way with tools and strategies. A member raised to include discussing on the PTA mtg agenda in the next month or two. Book of the month - theme with discussion questions. December - giving theme.
- Streamling Goals and Messaging
Volume of emails discussion brought up by a member.
PS 29 has always tried to be deliberate and keep the number of emails down but recently a lot of things were added last minute from external sources. A lot related to covid but hoping that will decrease over the year. Discussed communications apps (eg. Class Dojo and Konstella) – possible cons of monitoring and accessibility.
Members suggested focusing on the subject line or perhaps specific coding of the subject line that signifies importance or theme.
Discussed newsletters – weekly updates are favored but suggestions on format welcomed to help streamline. Grade specific emails used to decrease volume.
Committees are now consolidated and focus is on joint activities, the number of past committees was possibly overwhelming but maybe having these 5 will be better now.
Discussion of 15 Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture reading
- Here is the link to the website for the 15 Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture.
Members discussed and shared their views. A lot of information to unpack, thoughts that permeate many parts of our lives, looking into how it affects our school’s classrooms and policies, how this is related to our kids, where the ideas start, when and how we can make changes.
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
Possibly continue discussion of 15 Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture
Can email co-chairs any other ideas for discussion.
Adjournment
Click here to access SLT Bylaws.
Dates for Future Meetings (subject to change)
- December 16th
- January 20th
- February 17th
- March 17th
- April 28th
- May 19th
- June 16th
October 21st, 2021
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Kim Isserlis
Clavel Lazarre
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Cara Turnbull
Elisabeth Stephens
Kim Van Duzer
Kim Brooks
Matt McIntyre
Sara Thorne
Review and Approve September Minutes
- The minutes were approved.
Principal’s Report
- We’re thinking about ways to build community while recognizing that we’re still in a pandemic.
- This past Sunday was the Rummage Sale - it was a great event, people appreciated being in person together at school.
- Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up (Week of Nov. 8th), but there will be no report card alongside the conference this year. Report cards will be distributed in early December - this gives teachers more time to get to know students and their work.
- Harvest Week is coming up next week (Week of October 25th); the plan is that during recess while kids are masked and outdoors, parent volunteers will come to do some of the activities that formerly took place in the classroom (bees/pollination, apples, zucchini spiralizing, harvest lunch, etc.)
- Screeners - a new initiative for the DOE this year. These are not standardized tests but periodic assessments that happen three times a year in both math and reading. We were assigned these by the DOE. They are Acadience (K-2) and MAP Growth (3-5). These are meant to be low-stakes assessments that give teachers information about what students are “ready to learn.”
- Members shared concerns about the implementation of the screeners.
SLT Sub-Committee
- Recap of Committee Fair and Next Steps
- 30-40 parents attended
- Information was collected; the next step is to share the info with sub-committee chairs so that they can get the committees up and running
- Another next step: committee chair zoom to discuss how committees can join forces on different issues, share the protocols again, answer questions
- A member asked if the goal was to have each SLT member be connected with a committee; yes - this will also allow each SLT point person to report back to SLT about how things are going
- We determined the SLT point person for each subcommittee:
- Wellness (nutrition, garden, go green, mindfulness) - Clavel
- IDEA - Cara
- Grants - Matt
- Learning Support - Dionne
- Education Action - Sara
- (Service) this committee may merge into several other committees (education action, IDEA, wellness - maybe every committee should have a service element?) - Clavel
- What if someone missed the committee fair - is there a way for them to still get involved? There was a google form that people could use to sign up - this can be shared with anyone who is interested but could not make the fair.
- The first committee meeting could include setting long term goals and reviewing the protocols.
- The committee chair emails on the PS 29 website need to be updated.
Selection of First Text/Podcast/Etc Focus Aligned to our Ongoing Goal Around Equity
- Our first text will be 15 Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture by Tema Okun
- Two team members will bring possible protocols for the discussion
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
September 30th, 2021
In attendance:
Halee Hochman
Rebecca Fagin
Clavel Lazarre
Anna Janash
Dionne Burnett
Cara Turnbull
Emma Fitzpatrick
Kim Van Duzer
Kim Brooks
Sara Thorne
Olivia Poor
Matt McIntyre
Dawn Pender
Welcome and Introductions
Each SLT member introduced themselves to the group.
Approve June Minutes
The June minutes were approved.
Roles and Responsibilities of SLT Members
Anna Janash was elected co-chair, and Dionne Burnett and Kim Van Duzer will share secretary responsibilities.
Principal’s Report
CEP Goals:
Principal shared the goals for math (improve retention of grade level content across the year through implementation of “spiral review” in Grades 3-5); ELA (support ENL students with development of oral language skills); and social emotional learning this year (using restorative circles/a restorative justice approach to discipline).
Sub Committees:
- Our subcommittees support our schoolwide goals and initiatives
- Our garden’s harvest has already been donated to some local organizations - this is connected to our Wellness committee
- We are part of the CCRE Collective through Bank Street College of Education, which is helping us to craft our long-term vision around inclusion, diversity and equity - this is connected to our IDEA committee
SLT Sub-Committee Protocols and Expectations
Co-Chair shared that all SLT members are expected to be part of one sub-committee. The idea behind this is that the SLT is in touch with the schoolwide goals and initiatives and the sub-committees are working toward those goals.
All sub-committees should have one staff member and one parent from the
SLT.
The Sub Committees are:
- Wellness (nutrition, garden, go green, mindfulness)
- IDEA
- Grants (not active last year)
- Learning Support
- Education Action (not active last year)
- Service (not active last year)
- STEAM/Enrichment (not active last year)
- Visiting Author (not active last year)
A member asked about the service committee, and another member explained that in previous years, the service committee organized service projects for each grade to participate in, related to their curriculum. Another focus of this committee is disseminating information about service projects in the larger community.
Grants committee - has done both researching grants that we are eligible for, and applying for grants that teachers or others have found that might help our school.
Thoughts about how to consolidate some of our committees to make sure we don’t have too many committees, too many events, etc.
- Could Service include Wellness, for example?
- Could IDEA include Education Action?
A member shared that parents sometimes come with their own ideas for projects but get frustrated when those ideas can’t be immediately fulfilled or put into action.
A member expressed that it seems like there are a lot of committees and some could be consolidated, and that if there is a process they can follow if parents have an idea, that would make everything run more smoothly.
Protocols for Meetings - a member raised a question about whether the committee meetings should be Zoom only for this year … or maybe a dial-in option so people can listen even if they can’t participate?
Next steps: committee fair, leaders of each committee are established (one parent, one staff), then a meeting with those committee leaders to establish protocols and guidelines
A member raised a question about the timing and locations for both future SLT meetings and committee meetings - will they be in person, or on Zoom? What time will the meetings take place (after school is hard for parents, evening is hard for teachers)
- Events in the yard have been packed, events on Zoom not; members expressed that parents want to do things in person
- Committee Fair - could this be held in the yard, so we can do it in person, after drop off?
SLT Yearlong Focus
- Bring ideas for a book, podcast, etc, that is aligned to our school goal around equity/anti-racist, anti-bias work
Creation of Agenda for Next Meeting
- Continue to discuss yearlong SLT focus
- SLT committees - how do we communicate within the committee? Does each committee have an email address they can use to communicate with each other? How does the committee communicate with the parent body?
Moving forward we will have meetings on Zoom.
Dates for Future Meetings (subject to change)
- October 21st
- November 18th
- December 16th
- January 20th (please note that the date has changed)
- February 17th
- March 24th
- April 28th
- May 19th
- June 16th
For the SLT Bylaws click here