Thursday, March 20, 2014

Worcester School Committee meets TONIGHT!

Worcester School Committee meets tonight! You can find the agenda--and one of our two (rare) supplemental agenda--here.
Very quick overview today due to time constraints ('though it's also a short agenda): we have our Valentine award winners coming in tonight.
Two major items on the agenda:

  • The first is the (oft-written of) reconsideration. PLEASE NOTE: nothing that happens tonight changes the basic standard that yes, you may, as a parent, opt our child out of taking the pilot PARCC exam this spring. Should reconsideration succeed--we have to have a majority vote to even reconsider the motions--we are deciding if everyone (parents, teachers, principals, the School Committee) should have the administrative protocol around opting out, and if we should forward to the state a letter, like those of other districts, stating our legal objections. If reconsideration succeeds, then we will have this discussion. If it fails, the vote from two weeks ago stands. If we have the discussion, we have a revote of those two issues.
  • The second very important issue being discussed tonight is budgetary priorities. We have this backup regarding this item; take a look at page 2 for a nice overview of where the schools are at in how we're using our resources. The School Committee will be speaking to this issue individually and possibly at length. I would urge you to at least watch this portion of tonight for an update into the thus far fairly horrifying budget projections. 
I hope to get to the rest of the agenda--several donations and grants coming through! prior year payments! committee reports--but should I not, go take a look. 
And remember: the meetings stream live through Channel 11.
I will, as per usual, liveblog those portions of the meeting that I'm not speaking during. Should anything of particular note happen, I will endeavor also to get it out via Twitter.

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