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Site Council Minutes

November 12, 2007

Present:  Jennifer Purtell (parent, co-chair), Kenny Zimmerman (community), Chong Vang (student), Aaron Perrine (staff), Joe Laconic (staff), Suzanne Fields (parent), Kari Larson (community), M. Sodomka (principal), Isreal Moses (assistant principal), Jodi Brennen (community), Marilyn Mauritz (staff, alternate), Bonnie Bellows (staff), Lauren Rekonen (staff)

Not Present:  Valerie Atkinson (non-teaching staff, co-chair), Andy Mosca (Parent),  Tom Kranz (Union Representative), Tim Hausker (non-teaching staff),  Catherine Farrell (parent)

1. Approval of Agenda.
1. Motion to approve made by M. Sodomka, seconded by B. Bellows.  Unanimously approved

2. Approval of October 8, 2007 minutes.
1. Motion to approve made by M. Sodomka, seconded by B. Bellows.  Unanimously approved.

3. Open Forum
1. Jodi Brennen:  Attended the St. Paul Public Schools community forum at Johnson High School.  Noticed that Johnson was decorated for the holidays in a very festive way and it was impressive.  Dr. Carstarphen spoke briefly at the beginning.  A discussion of bringing social diversity curriculum into the schools was had.  The importance of community business support for early child development was discussed. 
2. Kari Larson:  The Neighborhood Learning Community is working on a 21^st Century Community Learning Grant to provide different activities for students around the West Side.

4. School Quality Review (SQR) Report: Patrick Romey Assistant Director of School Quality Reviews & Improvement Planning.
1. School Quality Review is a process based on asking the people who are doing the work in a company or school what is going well or not going well.  The results are presented to the group and all groups supporting that work. 
2. This report was based off of interviews with staff, a parent, and students, 56 staff surveys, and observations of classrooms and elsewhere.  Interviews are done by district volunteers.  All interviews are confidential. 
3. Nothing is put into the report unless it is heard by 3 different sources. 
4. Humboldt’s SQR report can be accessed by the public at www.sqrip.org. 
5. The report includes statistics and data about the school, strengths of the school, and challenges that the school face. 
6. Overall, the SQR team feels as though the staff and students had a sense of optimism for the future and a sense of having big challenges to overcome. 
5. Capital Expenditure Advisory Committee-appointment & proposals: M. Sodomka
1. There are two committees that the district uses to make decisions about how money should be spent.  We are looking for someone from Humboldt Sr. to apply to be on the Capital Expenditure Advisory Committee. 
6. Principal’s Report: M. Sodomka
1. I was at the AmVets event last Saturday representing Humboldt.
2. There have been outstanding turnouts at our conferences.  Parents seem to enjoy them more in the cafeteria. 
3. Title I Dinner was last week.  Turnout was pretty good, especially as the evening went on.  Bill Sommers gave a speech to the parents about how to help the students be successful at school. 
4. PTO has had two meetings so far.  8 parents have been at both meetings. 
5. There is a safety team working to develop plans for different scenarios and evacuation plans. 
6. All 9^th, 10^th, and 11^th graders have taken college-access tests. 
7. We are working to get an activity bus for students in after-school activities. 
8. There will be a college fair in the gym with around 40 colleges represented.
9. The end of the trimester is in two weeks.
10. Last Friday was a staff development day with Bill Sommers focusing on non-verbal communication and improving AYP scores within our curriculum. 
7. New Business. 
1. Motion to move the December 10^th, 2007 meeting from 6:00 to 5:00 to accommodate for the band concert made by J. Laconic.  Seconded by L. Rekonen.
8. Adjourn.   Motion to adjourn made L. Rekonen, Seconded by J. Laconic.  Unanimously approved. 

 

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