Worcester School Committee meets on Thursday

There is a regular meeting of the Worcester School Committee on Thursday at City Hall. You can find the agenda here.
After a few congratulations (way to go, Ogretta! Nice job, Midland!), the report of the superintendent this week is on the reworking of Title I funding due to the NCLB waiver. The federal government couched this as increased flexibility in the uses of Title I funding, but it appears to largely mean a shifting of such resources to remedial MCAS prep. Worth paying attention to.
We have not one, but two TLSS meetings reporting out this week (and the last one was cut short, so we'll be having another one soon!).
A list of appointments and retirements coming through from administration.
Per Ms. Biancheria's request, we have the full list of vendor contracts.
We have a report coming back on full day preschool naps.
Here's the list of Work Plus participation.
The WEDF mini-grant winners are announced here.
We're asking that we be updated on any changes with parking at the Worcester Public Library, that we talk administrative grant charges with the city, that we discuss our out-of-school suspension policy, that we consider MASC's petition to Congress on weapons, that we be updated on wraparound services, and that we look at bus routes in higher elevations.
We're also being asked to accept a $64,995 grant for North for science equipment, a $500 donation to Clark Street School, and a $50,000 grant for Early Elementary (as part of RTTT; we just got this, so I haven't gone through it yet).
We also have a few prior year invoices to vote through.
And, should the Council vote favorably tonight, we will have $500,000 to allocate for FY13.

Liveblogging budget hearing: question

Former School Committee member Ogretta McNeil
"our future and the future of our children and our grandchildren are in our hands"
"really consider adequately funding" preschool through grade 3
"need a strong foundation"
speaks of the disadvantage of children who don't have an enriched home in terms of language
gap in vocabulary between children in low income families and those with more money
gap in total brain growth and dollars spent is greatest between 4 and 7
MCAS gap in low income schools, low income families

She'd like three things going forward:

1. Return full day of preschool
2. IA's in all kindergarten
3. intervention in kindergarten as in all other grades