Next Up Natick

For those looking to influence, support, or better understand the conversation in Education Equity - the time is NOW in Massachusetts.  Too often, I find that our political process happens quietly and the attention only comes when those opposing or supporting a bill see it get voted on...  For months (and sometimes years) before a vote, however, the bills are in committee for discussion and revisions!   Both of these equity bills, S365 and H584  (same wording in both) are currently in that spot right now!  The are in the Joint Committee for Education.   If passed in their current form, they will create a commission to make recommendations  (not mandates) to School Committee's and Superintendents about changes to curriculum, fostering equity on the mtel (teacher exam) and creating resources for professional development with an equity focus. They will also create a private/public trust fund for future investments in these areas.  ...

 On Monday night the School Committee voted on the strategic plan:  First, we voted to extract the Equity goal from the Social Emotional Goal  Yes Vote: 7-0 Then, we discussed what exactly we were voting when voting about the goal areas (as listed on the agenda.)  It was confirmed that by voting the goal areas, we were also voting each of the items on the slides listed under the goal areas.  Yes Vote: 6-1 (I was the no vote and will share my dissenting view when the minutes are produced.)  This vote means that: The document is shared: responsibilities ... oversight for the School Committee and execution for the administration  Changes to this plan will need to be agreed upon by both entities. We have asked our administration to complete 67 tasks by June 30, 2022. We will also continue to see this plan throughout the year - again as a school committee to understand how each step will be measured or evaluated, it will help inform the School Improvement P...

Our Committee will hear the Strategic Plan tonight at the School Committee meeting  -  in person and on zoom. As is our protocol, I will save my debate for the meeting.   What is the Strategic Plan?   It is a foundational document housed on our transparency center on the NPS website: click here  to see it in detail. The slides for tonight's meeting are here .   It is Natick Public School's articulation of the guiding principles for our students.  It is the statement of goals by which we want to reach those principles and the strategic action steps that the administration will use to do so.    There are 5 areas with roughly 67 items of importance in the document.   Once approved, the Strategic Plan is the document by which the budget is built around and about which the policies for our district are set. 

  The School Committee agenda for Monday, September 20th can be seen here .  (separate blog coming about the rest of the agenda...)  Mandates for student vaccinations for students participating in extracurricular activities, school and club sponsored events and athletics will be discussed and possibly voted on.   I have asked that the documents be linked asap so you can read it yourself but until then... The Quick Summary:  The draft policy is a mandate for students who are age-eligible through FDA approved vaccinations. In the case of a student who age eligible and is not vaccinated, a weekly PCR test is required. How many of our students are vaccinated? Department of Health (DPH) -   Vaccine tracker    - click on weekly municipal report to see chart below and compare. columns are: county, town, age range, # of people in that group, % that is that age, # of age group partially vaxed, proportion of full town partially vaxed, fully ...

FYI:  Click here for the slide deck on dyslexia and special education  in the materials for tomorrow's school committee meeting, Monday 9/13.   - summary of what the administration heard during dyslexia listening sessions held in June with families  - proposed solutions to address the problems identified. - Special Education satisfaction survey data  The public is always welcome to attend these public meetings and/or submit comments.

photo source below The Policy Subcommittee* Update:  Our committee met yesterday.  We drafted this vaccine policy for staff (to be negotiated with the union), contractors and vendors. It will be presented to the entire board on Monday night for a vote.    The next policy Subcommittee meeting is  Tuesday, September 14th at 1:15 p.m . (in person)  Topics coming up - Student vaccinations and policy subcommittee goals for the year.  *Subcommittees are a 2-3 member groups working with administration on specific topics. It's a way to workshop ideas and draft documents during a public meeting - anyone can attend our subcommittee groups.  The full board always reserves the right to amend, send something back to subcommittee, pass or strike something down that comes out of the subcommittees. Have questions about COVID and Return to School? Testing, Athletics and Negotiations... Board of Health Meeting, Monday 9/13 at 5:00 p.m. Agenda and link here . ...

NPS is up and running...  Quick update to let you know the Policy Subcommittee is meeting tomorrow, 9/9 at 11:00 a.m.  Agenda here.   (In person meeting). After the meeting, I will post more thoughts on what we discussed. Natick teachers and staff are working on establishing routines while families and students learn what those expectations are and what they mean in real terms. Next Full School Committee is on September 13th, virtual option, at 6:30 p.m.  I will send a link in a few days when it is posted with the agenda. Happy back to school!