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Minutes 07-09-08 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD MEETING HELD ON WEDNESDAY, JULY 9,2008, AT 7:00 P.M. IN CITY COMMISSION CHAMBERS, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Brian Miller, Chair Victor Norfus, Vice Chair Belky Cruz Paula Melley, arrived 7:10 Stanley Sorgman Phyllis Stern Judy Immer, Alt ABSENT: Blanche Hearst-Girtman Eddie Mitchell I. Call Meeting to Order - Pledge of Allegiance Chair Miller called the meeting to order at 7:09 p.m. followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag II. Roll Call The Recording Secretary called the roll and determined a quorum was present. III. Recognition of Visitors Chair Miller recognized Ms. Gertrude Sullivan, and Mr. Keith Oswald, the new principal at Boynton Beach High School. IV. Approval of Agenda Chair Miller announced Mr. Oswald would be heard first. Motion Ms. Melley moved to approve the agenda as amended with Mr. Oswald presenting under New Business. Vice Chair Norfus seconded the motion that unanimously passed. IX. New Business a) Board Discussion: How can the board get involved with the Boynton Beach High School Programs 1 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9, 2008 Chair Miller announced there had been a change in leadership in Boynton Beach High School and Keith Oswald was the new Principal. He had been in the school system since 1993, he has a Principal for five years and an Instructional Superintendent in the South Bronx for two years. Last year he was a Restructuring Administrator in the main office. He would be discussing some of his ideas and leave the board with some of his thoughts what could be done to make the high school one of the best. Mr. Oswald, who lived in the area, remembered how exciting it was for the high school to be constructed and acknowledged it has been a struggle with student achievement. The school scores were released and the school was rated a liD" school. It was his objective to change the score to a B in one year. He was working to recruit high quality teachers and build teacher capacity to meet the student needs. The recruited teachers would be some of the best teachers in the State and would know how to help struggling students, especially in core subject areas. Working with the school district, they would be a training site for reading teachers and they would be using the reading workshop program, which was used in New York and other areas. It resulted in great gains in reading achievements. Students would learn reading was a life-long skill. Mr. Oswald advised they would build classroom libraries and reach out to the board for book drives. The goal was each reading teacher would have approximately 1,000 books in each classroom. With the boards help, and through churches and the community, they would seek to get in touch with the parents, especially the working parents. Student attendance needed to be improved and students should be on time. Pam Whigham, Director of Choice Programs and Community Relations, would work with the Guidance Department, and through parents and community relations, get the community involved with the school. She requested the boards help and support in that regard. The sports program would be available, but academics were the first priority. He distributed the football schedules and announced Rick Swain would be in charge of football. They wanted the stands filled and have the community support the students. They also wanted to bring back students who have left Boynton and let them know good things were occurring at the high school. The school had a $9M black box theater for voice dance and drama, which was an incredible opportunity for students in the performing arts. 2 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9, 2008 Chair Miller left the dais at 7:18 p.m. The school also had a partnership with Embry Riddle Aeronautical University which would assist students with scholarships and which had a dedicated staff. Chair Miller returned to the dais at 7: 19. Mr. Oswald advised he was competitive and determined this year would be the last year the school received a liD" rating. Regarding the football program, Mr. Oswald reported many families could not afford equipment and they would sell banners to raise funds. Season tickets would be offered for $20 and included a free tee shirt. He asked the board members to spread the word and request even if they could not make the games, to buy the tickets anyway and wear the tee shirts. Mr. Oswald expressed anything the board could do to get businesses to support them, such as food donations for school games would be great. Mr. Oswald advised he would return with additional ideas the board could support in the future. He asked their support at football games, even at the away games. The first game was against Park Vista on August 28, and they would like a big showing of Boynton residents there. The board members had the following questions: Ms. Cruz asked if Mr. Oswald had an open door policy with parents, so they can go directly to him instead of making various appointments. She reported she saw that as a great need. Mr. Oswald responded he did have an open door policy, but if issues could be resolved through a counselor or teacher, parents needed to know they could turn to them as well. He would never turn parents away. Ms. Immer knew a student in the aeronautics program and she extolled it had a fabulous reputation. She also volunteered to be a liaison between the Community Relations Board and the high school. She explained she was neighbors with Ms. Wigham. Ms. Wigham's role was to be a liaison for parents. She explained volunteers have talents, but they had not assessed all the needs. Mr. Oswald reported they may need people to volunteer in the counseling reception office. Mr. Sorgman inquired how many students were enrolled and expressed he believed the success of any program required community involvement. He offered to purchase a season ticket and he would review any other kind of assistance needed. Mr. Oswald explained they were projected to have 1,400 3 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9, 2008 students this year. Boynton Beach High School fell under the No Child Left Behind program. It was known 48 parents exercised their option to have their child attend another high school. Vice Chair Norfus had questions about the school boundaries. Ms. Wigham explained they were not square There were maps on the school board website and the area the school served was shaped like a fish. He asked if they were targeting certain subject areas to improve. Mr. Oswald explained the reading scores suffered this year and there was a large population of students speaking a second language. The math scores experienced some gains. It was emphasized the research was clear that in order to read better, the student had to read often. Mr. Oswald's background included reading and literacy work and he explained there were many curriculum units to work with. There was a readers workshop model that was used around the country which gave students a lot of time to read. This helped the teachers to know the students as readers, and to know the comprehension strategies and mini-lessons needed. The model was to teach the teachers how to teach the students. He thought at least 30 minutes a day at home was needed at a minimum and studies reflected if the students read two hours a day, their percentiles in reading were in the 80 to 90 percent. He explained they could be taught about genre, and that was why they needed so many books; they needed to learn what their own interests were. Studies were showing one out of four teenage students did not know what they wanted to do after graduating high school. The kids needed a direction and a purpose. He advised a good way was to just teach teachers how to teach smarter. Vice Chair Norfus explained an Intergenerational Day was scheduled for July 19, 2008, which was designed for the entire community. Mr. Oswald was interested in being part of it and thought it went hand in hand with being part of the community. He explained the students needed to see their leaders in the school, so they understand how it affects their lives. Ms. Stern inquired whether the high school had the resources to pick up the book donations if they collected a sizable amount of books. She advised her community had an ongoing library that recycled books. She thought they would find a good home at the high school and inquired if they had flyers to circulate. Mr. Oswald responded they were redoing flyers and he would get them to Chair Miller. Ms. Melley asked whether the theater was open and ready to be used. She advised that facility could be a great beacon for the community and that 4 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9,2008 a liD" grade was demoralizing. Additionally, a teacher indicated the problem was Congress Middle School. She inquired if he had any communication with the Congress Middle School Principal to stop the issues the high school had to manage. Mr. Oswald responded the principal there was aware and was working on those issues. He was also working with other elementary school principals as well. As far as reading scores, there was discussion a ninth grader could still turn their reading scores around. Diane Pacheco who works with literacy was referenced as a good resource. Ms. Melley inquired about the turnover rate and the methodology for establishing terms at the school. Mr. Oswald intended to be at the school for the long term and become an area superintendent. Training people and helping them was his forte. He believed principals should stay in the school to have long term success. He believed the school was poised to take off and should be recognized for accomplishments down the road. Weston Seville, a resident of Boynton Beach, explained they just started a community center, and they were trying to recruit local residents and teach computers and English. He asked what the plan was for non-English speaking parents to get involved with their child's education. Mr. Oswald explained they were working to have a self-contained program for students brand new to the country and then transition them into the classes. There would be a parent liaison, and through her they could determine what type of programs they wanted. They offered parent programs in the evening, and they have a night school with large course offerings. During the day they had guidance counselors to work with immigrant families and facilitators to help immerse them into the language. Parents were welcome to sit in classes so they could learn the programs as well. They would also work with the Haitian and African American communities because there was racial tension. At the moment, there were translators for Spanish speaking students, and a certain ratio of students were needed before a facilitator would be sent. It was noted Guatemalans had never been to school, they were tribal Indians with no type of education and they would need assistance. Chair Miller thanked Mr. Oswald for attending. v. Approval of Minutes Ms. Stern moved to approve the minutes. Ms. Cruz seconded the motion that unanimously passed. 5 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9, 2008 VI. Announcements: Reminder - 2008 Intergenerational Gathering Event - Victor Norfus. Vice Chair Norfus announced the Intergenerational Gathering Event was scheduled for July 19, 2008 and there were many vendors and events planned. He was involved in the voting registration portion of the event. The event would be held at the Carolyn Sims Center. Gertrude Sullivan inquired where to put the names of the volunteers attending the event in the program. Chair Miller expressed he was working with the board liaison on that and they would have a table at the event with CERT volunteers and possibly the high school. If a member wanted to volunteer even for an hour, they should contact Chair Miller. Vice Chair Norfus announced on the 25th of July, there would be a Voters League of Palm Beach County in City Chambers at 7 p.m. and he would be facilitating the event. He also announced he attended a Sand Castle neighborhood meeting and it was a good meeting. VII. Pride in Boynton Update a) Heart of Boynton (HOB) and Federal Highway Trash Receptacles. Chair Miller announced the 24 trash containers for the HOB and Federal Highway area were anticipated to arrive next week. The CRA wanted to work with the CRB to make a presentation regarding their distribution in the community. Anyone wanting to volunteer for that project should speak with him after the meeting. b) CERT Summer Program: Hurricane Expo Mr. Sorgman announced the training exercise went well and had great turnout. The event was a refresher course for what was taught in the classes. The Hurricane Expo was held at the mall and many CERT members participated. Chief Ness was retiring and the members did not know whether anything was planned for his retirement but thought something should be done for him as he would be hard to replace. Mr. Sorgman reminded the members to prepare for 6 Meeting Minutes Community Relations Board Boynton Beach, Florida July 9, 2008 hurricane season. In his community they were forming a communication team and will be in contact with the Fire Department. Ms. Stern announced Hunters Run invited Chief Ness, his family and auxiliary from CERT for the Gala dinner that turned out to be a successful experience that all enjoyed. VIII. Old Business a) Summer Break: There would be no meeting on August 13, 2008. IX. New Business This item was addressed earlier in the meeting. Chair Miller advised there are many programs and they needed more subcommittees. Ms. Immer would be involved with the high school committee, as would Ms. Stern and Chair Miller. At the April 15th City Commission meeting there was an unfinished business item to approve the final recommendations put forward by the American Assembly Subcommittee. There were 26 items passed. The 26th item was to establish a community relations team and create a roadshow. Chair Miller asked for a committee to be formed to prepare a program for the City Commission to approve and fund. It was suggested the members write down ideas and send them to Chair Miller so he could meet with the City Manager. At the September meeting they would discuss the mission and the budget. Chair Miller requested any member who signed up for Boynton Beach High School Football season tickets to send him the check. Ms. Immer volunteered to man the table at the Intergenerational Gathering from 1 :00 - 2:00 p.m. and Ms. Melley volunteered from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m., Mr. Sorgman volunteered for 9:00 to 11 :00 a.m. X. Adjournment Ms. Stern moved the meeting be adjourned. Ms. Cruz seconded the motion that unanimously passed. The meeting adjourned at 8:23 p.m. (tJJ:k1iLL.,lt G.Ju-uW- Catherine Cherry U Recording Secretary 7