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Minutes 02-04-99 MINUTES OF THE EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD MEETING HELD IN LIBRARY PROGRAM ROOM, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1999 AT 6:30 P.M. PRESENT ALSO PRESENT Dawn Russell, Chairperson Virginia Farace, Education Advisory Ronald Ehster Board Liaison David Fellows Revia Lee Eddie Mitchell Guarn Sims Adriana Borgia, Voting Alternate Heidi DeVries, Student Markdaline St. Fort, Student ABSENT David Brownstein, Alternate Margaret Newton I. GREETINGS Chairperson Russell welcomed all the members to the meeting. II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Chairperson Russell called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. and led the members in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. III. ROLL CALL Chairperson Russell asked the Recording Secretary to call the roll. A quorum was declared present. Ms. Farace noted that Ms. Borgia, Alternate to the Board would be a voting member this evening unless all members were present. IV. MINUTES APPROVAL- January 7, 1999 Chairperson Russell asked if there were any comments or additions to the minutes of the January 7, 1999 meeting. MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Chairperson Russell requested that the word “Temporary” be stricken in the next to the last paragraph on Page 9. Motion Ron Ehster moved to approve the minutes of the January 7, 1999 meeting, as amended. Motion seconded by Ms. Revia Lee and unanimously carried. V. CHAIR’S REPORT A. Tri-City Education Boards Workshop Chairperson Russell reported on the Tri-City Board Meeting that she, Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Fellows and Ms. Farace attended on Monday, which had representatives from Boynton Beach, Boca Raton and Delray Beach. The meeting was productive and each Board presented their goals and objectives. Chairperson Russell reported that Delray Beach’s Education Advisory Board covers both public and private schools in the City, as well as having a budget. Delray Beach’s goal was that the public should have a better outlook on the schools and to accomplish this, Delray Beach undertook cleaning up the appearance of the schools. Also, every school in Delray Beach has one or two businesses affiliated with the school and if the school is in need of anything, they can turn to that business. Delray Beach also has a travelling trophy and the trophy goes to the school that has accomplished most of its goals and it travels throughout the City. Delray Beach also holds an education expo to show the community what the schools are doing and the Youth Council showcases the talent in the schools. Chairperson Russell also said that Boca Raton’s Education Advisory Board also covers both public and private schools, but only schools situated within the City limits. Chairperson Russell said that Boca Raton has a grant program that is tied in with Florida Atlantic University. Chairperson Russell inquired if Boynton Beach has a grant writer and Ms. Farace stated that each department is responsible for writing its own grants. Chairperson Russell suggested that these services should also be available to Boynton Beach, since FAU is a Florida University. Chairperson Russell distributed the Goals and Objectives supplied by Delray Beach. Also, Delray Beach publishes a newspaper about their schools and a Delray Beach newspaper was distributed to each Board member. Ms. Farace thought that the budget for Delray Beach included the cost of publishing the newspaper. Ms. Farace said that the Boynton Beach Chamber of Commerce has a small directory of the City Schools, which is also done by Boca Raton. 2 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Ms. Farace noted that this Board has identified its goals, but never wrote a full goal statement or action objectives. Ms. Farace would like this Board over the next year to prepare a document regarding its goals and objectives similar to Delray Beach. Mr. Fellows said he was very impressed with the Delray Beach newspaper and when businesses look to an area to relocate, they want to know about the schools. Delray Beach uses the newspaper as a marketing tool to attract businesses. Ms. Farace said the newspaper was an economic development tool and should be under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce’s Education Board. B. City Boards’ Forum Chairperson Russell informed members that the City Board Forum would be Saturday, February 6, 1999 from 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon in the Library. Following the Forum, there will be a discussion on the Youth Center and Youth Council from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Mr. Fellows, Mr. Mitchell and Chairperson Russell indicated they would be attending. VI. CITY LIAISON REPORT A. New High School Update Ms. Farace noted that the newest edition of the Visions, Views and City News has an article on the whole front page on the new High School. B. Follow-up Report Ms. Farace reported on the following: ? Ms. Newton inquired if the Drug-Free School Zone signs should still be posted around the Galaxy School. Ms. Farace said that the signs should be up, as it is the law, and Chief Gage will be following through on the signs. Ms. Farace said if anyone notices any signs missing at other schools, to please let her know. ? With regard to the policing of the Forest Park playground by the Boynton Beach Police Department, Chief Gage informed Ms. Farace that when school is in session it is the responsibility of the School. After school hours, if there was an incident on the playground, the City police would be called and they would contact the School Police, if appropriate. Mr. Fellows asked if the School Police have arrest powers and was informed they do, but the Security Officers do not. ? With regard to the Interlocal Agreement with the Schools, Ms. Farace determined that it was not a blanket agreement that covered all schools, but was on a school- by-school basis. 3 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 ? On the SIP presentations, Ms. Farace worked with Ms. Decker and there are two thth dates that are tentatively set. One is April 13 and the other is May 11. Ms. Decker indicated she would let Ms. Farace know by tonight’s meeting which date it would be, but Ms. Farace has not heard from Ms. Decker. Ms. Decker has asked for a waiver of the School Improvement Plans not to be due on the earlier date, in order that test results could be used for the School Improvement Plans. If the test results could be used, the due date of the School Improvement Plans could be delayed by one month and the presentation could be in May, rather than in April. thth Ms. Farace requested that Board members keep April 13 and May 11 available. Ms. Farace, Mr. Sims and Mr. Fellows met to review a possible agenda for the SIP presentations. They would begin at 6:30 p.m. and finish by 8:30 p.m. The schools would be invited to arrive at 6:00 p.m. if they needed any kind of set up for presentations. The schools would have seven minutes for their presentation, followed by a two-minute question and answer session. The meeting would open at 6:30 p.m. with Chairperson Russell explaining the purpose of the Education Advisory Board. Ms. Decker would provide an explanation on School Improvement Plans and the purpose of the community presentation. The first school presentation would start at 6:40 p.m. and thereafter every 10 minutes a school would give its presentation, with the last school making its presentation at 8:20 p.m. Ms. Farace said the order of the schools making their presentation was determined. It was done so that when advertising to the public, it would be known what school would be presenting at what time. It is expected that all of the school personnel would stay throughout all the presentations. The presentations would be given as follows: 6:40 p.m. - Royal Palm School 6:50 p.m. -Forest Park School 7:00 p.m. - Galaxy School 7:10 p.m. - Poinciana School 7:20 p.m. - Rolling Green School 7:30 to 7:40 – Break 7:40 p.m. - Congress Middle School 7:50 p.m. - Christa McAuliffe School 8:00 p.m. - Atlantic High School 8:10 p.m. - Santaluces High School 8:20 p.m. - South Technical High School 4 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Ms. Farace noted that Ms. Decker is going to request that all of the Principals stay throughout all the presentations. Ms. Farace asked if anyone had any changes or suggestions. Motion Mr. Fellows moved that the Agenda for the SIP presentations as presented be accepted. Motion seconded by Mr. Sims, which carried unanimously. VII. COMMITTEE REPORTS There was discussion on whether to hold another roundtable meeting to which the principals would be invited again. Because it is uncertain if the School Improvement Plan presentation may not take place until April or May, it was determined to hold another roundtable meeting in the fall. A. Alternative to Suspension Program (David Fellows) Chairperson Russell noted there was a newspaper article on the Alternative to Suspension Program in the Sun Sentinel. Mr. Fellows said that the funding was approved by the School Board last night for CARP to provide counseling services for the second semester. Mr. Fellows said there is still the need for a second teacher at Santaluces High School. With regard to Congress Middle School, there is a teacher in Tallahassee who is interested in the position and Mr. Sills is waiting for confirmation from this particular teacher. The portable is in place at Congress Middle School, but is not ready to date. Mr. Fellows said he would be making a presentation in Pinellas County next Tuesday. Mr. Fellows said that the dropout rate for Clearwater High School four years ago was 4% and steadily declined and last year it was 1.8%. This also increases revenue. The school receives revenue for each student that remains in school, so that the program actually pays for itself. Mr. Fellows stated that the teacher that was hired for Pinellas County was actually a life skills counselor that was certified to teach. This is an area that could be looked at for recruitment for the teaching position. Mr. Mitchell inquired if adding teachers to the School Suspension Program would take away from the amount of teachers that are targeted as regular teachers. Therefore, the class size would be increased. Mr. Fellows said these are additional teaching units for the school, which have been specifically identified for this program. The two teachers for this program will not reduce the regular teaching staff. Mr. Sims inquired if Mr. Alligood would be offering this program at the elementary level, since there is a major need for the program in that area as well. There are children everyday that disrupt classes and there is no alternative for these children. Mr. Fellows 5 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 said there has been no discussion for the program being offered at the elementary school level. Mr. Fellows said that Mr. Alligood wants to see how the program works first before it is expanded. Mr. Fellows said that Mr. Alligood does plan to expand the program and offer it at Olympic Heights next year. Mr. Fellows said that offering the program at the elementary school requires a different approach than offering it at the middle and high school level. Mr. Fellows said the School Board has approved five of the programs to be offered at Congress Middle School, Santaluces High School (2 programs), Lake Worth Juvenile Assessment Center, and at another Assessment Center. Mr. Fellows said that with the assistance of CARP, perhaps a program could be developed for the elementary schools. Mr. Sims felt that there should be at least an experimental program developed for one or two elementary schools, the needs of which are as great as that of the high school and middle schools. Mr. Fellows said that this could be another goal of the Education Advisory Board to offer this program at Christa McAuliffe School and a couple of elementary schools. Mr. Mitchell said it is important to start these programs when the children are young and by the time they reach high school it could be too late. Mr. Mitchell said that if a disruptive student in elementary school were offered this program, it would make them better citizens when they reach the high school level. Mr. Mitchell felt that a school, such as Forest Park, would really benefit from this type of program. Mr. Sims said there is a great deal of pressure on all principals at all levels to take a look at suspensions and the same pressure exists at the elementary school level when there are grade school students who are severely disruptive. Mr. Sims said that is it difficult for a teacher to suspend a student and Assistant Principals are faced with the problem of keeping these children in school, but don’t know what to do with them. Mr. Sims said there is a significant number of children on a daily basis that are disruptive and there is no place to put them except to sit in the office. Ms. Lee suggested that this Board make a recommendation to encourage the program to be offered at the elementary school level. Mr. Ehster said that before new programs are proposed, the data should be gathered on what went wrong with the old programs. Mr. Ehster said that it has been six years since the Alfa program and that program was replaced with the Cities and Schools Program. Mr. Ehster was uncertain how the program would work at the elementary school level and stated there were already programs offered at the elementary schools. Mr. Fellows stated that Alfa was an excellent program, but it was transferred to a new school and Boynton Beach should not have given up the program. Mr. Fellows said that the same principles for the program at the high school could be structured for a program at the 6 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 elementary school level and could be offered at the Forest Park School. Mr. Fellows suggested that the City might wish to offer some financial support for the program. Mr. Mitchell said that the Gathering Storm was not against students being suspended if they were destructive. The Gathering Storm felt that in the proportion of black children and other minorities versus white students in schools, the percentage for suspension for the minority students was greater than that of white students. This is the main issue of the Gathering Storm and that the School District is not being fair with minority children in dealing with suspensions. Mr. Fellows stated that the program in effect is an Affirmative Action Program, which was not its primary intent. Mr. Fellows said that if suspensions for the minority students were higher than for white students, they would actually benefit from the program. Mr. Fellows said that part of the function of the Master Level Counselors with the program is not just to work with the children in the program, but also to be a resource to the faculty and staff and can conduct workshops on classroom management, anger management, conflict resolution, etc. B. Raising Test Scores No report C. “Gathering Storm” Issues Mr. Mitchell announced there would be a meeting on Saturday in West Palm Beach on the Gathering Storm. Mr. Mitchell said that the SAC director of South Tech was very pleased with the meeting where all the representatives from the school were present, since many of them were unfamiliar with the problems existing in the Gathering Storm. They have been working on programs at South Tech to address these issues, since South Tech will become a High School next year. Therefore, it has been included in their School Improvement Plan for 1999/2000 and Mr. Mitchell read to the members one of the goals, which was to improve future test results. D. Parental Involvement Chairperson Russell said she did not have anything to report. E. School Concurrency Mr. Ehster said that nothing new has taken place in January. Mr. Ehster inquired if the City Commission responded to the Board’s request that it be allowed to make recommendations when the Commission receives the School Concurrency Plan. 7 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Ms. Farace stated that the Commission suggested that if the Board put a recommendation on the City Commission Agenda, they would respond to it. F. Administrative Area Issue Chairperson Russell informed members she spoke with Elizabeth Decker about the two schools that are still under Area 1 and she thought it would be a good idea for these two schools to be moved to Area 2 with all the other Boynton Beach Schools. Ms. Decker indicated she would follow through on this issue and requested that this Board not do anything further on this until she gets back to the Board. G. Legislative Issues Mr. Sims indicated this was not his committee, but he did notice in the papers today that Governor Bush is proposing to allocate $15 million in reading grants and that a grant proposal could be submitted for a reading program for Forest Park. Mr. Sims said he only knew of one school that used Title 1 funds to staff a professional grant writer, and this particular school has received countless funds to provide for additional programs. Chairperson Russell suggested that the Boynton Beach Schools should utilize the FAU grant writing resource. Ms. Farace informed members that if there is a need for a partnership to receive the grants, the Library has worked with some schools with partnerships in reading and would be glad to work with any school that is looking for a partner. Mr. Fellows inquired if busing was going to be eliminated. Mr. Mitchell said that in order to eliminate busing, federal government approval is necessary and the federal government said that eliminating busing would not be allowed until they had an opportunity to study the plan. Ms. DeVries asked what the busing applied to. Ms. Farace indicated it was forced busing, which was used for desegregation purposes, as opposed to busing for transportation. Mr. Mitchell inquired how grant funds would be used and are the funds used for the entire school or for an individual teacher. Mr. Sims said that when applying for a grant, a program has to be identified that would be an extension of the day to day curriculum of the school, but in the long run the funds would be used for improvement of the school. Mr. Sims stated it was possible for a teacher to write a grant for additional funding for a project that this particular teacher may wish to undertake in his classroom only, but the teacher would still be operating under the auspices of the school. 8 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 H. SAC Representatives Citrus Cove Chairperson Russell said she attended the Citrus Cove SAC meeting on Tuesday night and said there was no input on the School Improvement Plan discussion. They discussed th the school calendar and parents were concerned that February 15 was not a designated day off this year. A walk-a-thon was held and the funds would be used to complete an overhang in the bus area. Also, they are trying to raise funds to extend the sidewalk in the parent drop-off area. There were concerns expressed regarding all the new apartments going up on Congress Avenue, north of Gateway and that the school is already overcrowded. Hagen Ranch Mr. Ehster reported that Hagen Ranch lost two teachers and 50 students this year. Mr. Ehster indicated that Ms. Borgia was going to be the Board’s SAC representative starting next week and he would be attending Forest Park. Mr. Ehster said that the school has a large Spanish population and the School is concentrating on improving language skills. Poinciana Ms. Lee said she attended the Poinciana SAC meeting last month and their School Improvement Plan was discussed. Ms. Lee said that Poinciana has written a two-year Plan. Poinciana is planning to do early entry packets for kindergarten for use in placing the children in classes. Children were given study packets to work on over the summer and math packets for all grade levels were prepared. Also, at the beginning of every nine weeks, Poinciana sends out a newsletter on math and technology informing the parents what the skills are that would be covered for that nine weeks. The school has parents’ night to help parents brush up on their skills in order to help their children. Ms. Lee said the School is doing a wonderful job and is using their School Improvement Funds to purchase materials for teachers to assist with the skills they teach and to train teachers. Ms. Farace inquired if there were any statistics on how many students used the packets over the summer. Ms. Lee said a survey is being sent out to determine this. Forest Park Mr. Sims indicated that he was supposed to establish contact with Forest Park and Mr. Ehster indicated he was going to attend their SAC meetings. Mr. Sims said he contacted the school and spoke with the Assistant Principal in detail who informed him that their 9 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 th next meeting is on February 18 and Mr. Sims indicated he would attend. Mr. Sims said that the majority of their School efforts are being focused on reading. The School is taking a detailed look at the reading curriculum being provided to the children and are extremely interested in a reading program that is produced by National Reading Styles. They have arranged to visit a school in Texas, which is currently operating with this program. Mr. Sims said there is a great disparity at the school in the performance of the minority children and that over half of the minority children are scoring at the bottom of the percentile in reading and mathematics. Ms. Sims said that the school population at Forest Park is 700 students and 72% of those children are on free or reduced lunch. Congress Middle School Mr. Fellows said he attended two Congress Middle School workshops dealing with the preparation of a Mission Statement for the School. Santaluces High School Mr. Fellows stated that Santaluces has been reviewing their School Improvement Plan and most of his efforts have been focused on the suspension plan at the School. South Technical Mr. Mitchell stated that what he reported under Gathering Storm covered South Technical. Mr. Mitchell added that South Technical is not certain if the EMT Program that is offered at the School will remain. If the Program remains at the School, it would be the only adult program being offered. The School was going to write to Superintendent Kowal and request stating that the School would like the program to remain and not be moved to Palm Beach Community College. VIII. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. Bylaws Chairperson Russell stated that there was a meeting scheduled to discuss the Bylaws, but the Committee members did not attend, except for Ms. Farace. Ms. Farace did draft Bylaws and Chairperson Russell met with Ms. Farace to review the Bylaws. The proposed Bylaws were distributed to the members for their review and discussion. Mr. Fellows questioned if the Bylaws were actually the Ordinance for the Board. Ms. Farace stated that she used information from the Ordinance, as well as including any updates of the Ordinance. Also the Board’s Mission and Vision Statements are included and all Board information would be accessible in one document. In addition, the Bylaws would cover the following: 10 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 ? The duties and responsibilities of the officers; ? The membership of the Board; ? The appointment, duties and responsibilities of the City Liaison; ? Board meetings and quorums; ? Appointing of various committees; and ? Board year Ms. Farace noted that whenever the City Commission passes any item that deals with all Boards, the Bylaws could be updated and all the information would be in one document. Also, this will assist new members when they join the Board. Ms. Lee asked for clarification on Alternates rotating on a monthly basis in the absence of a regular member, which Ms. Farace clarified for Ms. Lee. Mr. Fellows asked if the high school students on the Board are voting members. Ms. Farace said this issue was taken up with the City Commission and they indicated that the students are non-voting members. Mr. Mitchell inquired about the geographical areas of Boynton Beach because the meeting with the school principals included Manatee, but did not include Hagen Ranch. Also, Mr. Mitchell noted that Atlantic High School is outside the City limits. Ms. Farace stated the Ordinance did not say which schools this Board is to be concerned with, nor does it state that the schools must be within the geographic boundaries of the City. Ms. Farace said this Board could address this issue and decide what schools the Board wished to be involved with. However, Ms. Farace did not think this Board could be involved with private schools. Mr. Sims suggested that the busing issue should be resolved first by the federal government before this Board determines which schools it decides to be involved with. Mr. Fellows requested that under Article VII (“Committees”) it should state that a Board member must serve on at least one committee. Also, Mr. Fellows requested that an Article be added which references School Advisory Councils and membership on this Board would require a Board member must serve as a regular participating member on at least one SAC. Ms. Farace said this was discussed at one of the planning sessions and it was going to be decided if this was to be a priority. Ms. Farace said if this was placed in the Bylaws, it would override the planning process that indicated serving on a SAC was not a priority of the Board. Mr. Mitchell did not feel this requirement should be included in the Bylaws. Mr. Fellows felt it was important that each Board member serve on a SAC. Mr. Fellows 11 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 stated that all prospective Board members should be informed that not only would they be required to attend the Board’s monthly meeting, but also be involved in one subcommittee and one SAC. redraft the Bylaws and add that After discussion, it was agreed that Ms. Farace would each Board member must serve on one committee and that each Board member must serve on one School Advisory Council. This will be stated as two separate items. Ms. Farace will present the redrafted Bylaws for adoption at next month’s Board meeting. B. Youth Council Ms. Borgia stated she attended the last meeting of the City’s Advisory Board on Children and Youth and that the Board was very anxious in meeting with this Board to discuss the Youth Council. Mr. Fellows said he was also in attendance at that meeting and suggested that someone from their Board come to tonight’s meeting to discuss the Youth Council and explain why they want this Board to devote a portion of its time to their project. Ms. Farace said she received E-mail from their Board Liaison requesting that the Youth Council be placed on the agenda. Ms. Farace said that the Youth Council has been on this Board’s agenda for several months since the City Commission appointed this Board and the Youth Advisory Board to come back with a recommendation. Ms. Farace also said she received E-mail that from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., after Saturday’s Board Forum, the Children and Youth Advisory Board will be staying to meet to discuss the Teen Center and Youth Council. The Children and Youth Board asked that members from this Board join them at that meeting. Ms. DeVries indicated that she could attend. Also Chairperson Russell said she could attend part of the meeting. Ms. Borgia said she could not attend because she had to work. Ms. Farace requested that one of her staff attend the afternoon meeting since she has to be in Orlando. Ms. Farace said if there is going to be a Teen Center or Youth Council she is very interested from the Library’s point of view. C. America’s Promise (Alliance for Youth) Mr. Fellows inquired if this Board feels that the Youth Council and America’s Promise are worthwhile projects and that the Children and Youth Board should be encouraged to pursue them. Ms. Farace suggested that it be recommended to the City Commission that these two programs become the sole responsibility of the Children and Youth Board. Ms. Farace suggested waiting until after Saturday’s meeting. Ms. DeVries will report back to this Board at the next meeting. 12 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 D. Students at Commission Meetings Ms. Heidi DeVries said she spoke with Commissioner Denahan. Commissioner Denahan spoke with the City’s Assistant Attorney and recommended that one musical performance th be placed on the February 16 agenda. Also, Commissioner Denahan suggested that Chairperson Russell could make a presentation to the Commission that this Board would like a musical performance included in the agenda from September through May each year. Ms. Farace received E-mail from Ms. Lamanna of the City Attorney’s Office regarding musical performances at City Commission meetings. Commissioner Denahan suggested that Ms. Lamanna contact Ms. Farace to discuss the procedure for bringing the suggestion before the Commission. Ms. Lamanna said it could be placed under New Business on the agenda. However, Ms. Lamanna suggested that Ms. Farace should prepare a memorandum to the City Manager outlining the program and recommending it be placed on the agenda if the City Manager deems it appropriate. Ms. Lamanna said th that the item would have to be submitted by Friday, February 5 to meet the next agenda deadline. Ms. Farace said she replied that there was no urgency to this issue and would nd recommend that the item appear on the March 2 Commission agenda. Ms. DeVries said she spoke with some of the school musical departments and they felt the idea was very good and would be happy to participate. Forest Park School was very enthusiastic, but indicated they would need approximately one month notice to prepare. Ms. DeVries said she drafted a letter to the schools. Ms. Farace indicated that it would be premature to send the letter, but the letter was distributed to the members for their review. Mr. Fellows felt that the program could also be offered during the summer months, because there are children who participate in summer programs. Mr. Fellows suggested that the music program could be tied in with the Pledge of Allegiance. Ms. DeVries said it was requested that the performance would conclude by 6:40 p.m. in the evening. Mr. Sims also felt that the performances should be as early as possible in order to allow the children to stay as long as their coordinator may determine, but not to have the children wait until late in the meeting to perform, especially where younger children were involved. Ms. Farace said that she and Ms. DeVries will work together to come up with a request to the City Manager to have it placed on the Commission Agenda as a recommendation from the Education Advisory Board. 13 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Motion Mr. Fellows moved that Ms. Farace and Ms. DeVries work together to come up with a request to ask the City Manager that the music presentation be placed on the City Commission Agenda. Motion seconded by Guarn Sims, which carried unanimously. IX. NEW BUSINESS None X. PUBLIC AUDIENCE None XI. ANNOUNCEMENTS Chairperson Russell announced: (1)That theNext Regular Board Meeting will be March 4, 1999 at 6:30 p.m. in the Library Program Room. (2) The City Boards Forum will take place Saturday, February 6, 1999 from 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon. Discussion of the Youth Center and Youth Council will take place from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Mr. Fellows asked if it would be appropriate to make a presentation on the Alternative to Suspension Program to the current City Commission. Ms. Farace said the Board could request a presentation from this Board to the Commission. Mr. Sims inquired how a member is assigned to serve on a particular committee of this Board. Mr. Sims said he would be interested in serving on the Legislative Committee on which Ms. Newton serves. Ms. Farace said the Board is governed by the Florida Sunshine Law. A Board member could head a committee and non-Board members could serve on that committee. In that particular instance the member could set meetings. Also, more than one Board member can serve on the same committee. However, when the committee meets, a notice must be sent to the City Clerk’s Office notifying them of the meeting. Ms. Farace said it has never been defined how Board members could serve on a committee other than a Board member’s interest in a particular committee. Ms. Farace said that Mr. Sims could serve on the Legislative Committee with Ms. Newton. Mr. Sims suggested that the matter could be further discussed at the next meeting. 14 MEETING MINUTES EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA FEBRUARY 4, 1999 Ms. Farace stated that the Board will request that it have an opportunity to make a nd presentation at the City Commission meeting on March 2 on the Alternative to Suspension Program. XII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, _______________________________ Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (two tapes) 15