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Minutes 01-22-15 MINUTES OF T H E E DUCATION AND YOUTH ADVISORY BOARD MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, 100 E. BOYTON EACH BOULEVARD, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON JANUARY 22,2014, AT 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Steve Waldman, Chair Carla Colebrooks Dr. Stephanie Hayden Carol Lundquist Hattie Miller Valencia Spells Anderson (arrived 6:12 p.m.) Lori Wilkinson (arrived 6:33 p.m.) Kathleen Wilkinson (arrived 6:33 p.m.) Dr. Tiffany North, Alternate ABSENT: Mary Morera, Vice Chair 1. Call to Order Chair Waldman called the meeting to order at 6:04 p.m. 111. Pledge of Allegiance/Moment of Silent Reflection The members recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag led by Ms. Miller, followed by a moment of silent reflection. Ill. Approval of Minutes of December 4, 2014 Motion Ms. Lundquist moved to approve the minutes. Dr. Hayden seconded the motion. Dr. Hayden requested one change to the minutes on page three, second to last paragraph as follows: DF. Hayden questioned NhetheF i t -G-6- -- k- -4- kveatmepA. Dr. Hayden wanted to research it to ensure it was the best way to go as it relates to the football program. Motion Dr. North moved to approve as amended. Ms. Colebrooks seconded the motion that unanimously passed. Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 2015 IV. Approval of Agenda No changes were made to the agenda. Motion Dr. North moved to approve the agenda. Ms. Lundquist seconded the motion that unanimously passed. V. Announcements/Presentations/Correspondence None. I. Public Audience Natalia Powers, Community Engagement Manager, for the School District of Palm Beach County, announced she was representing the new Chief of Communications and Engagement, Alex Sanchez. He has been with the District since July 1 and part of his initiative is reorganization. He sought to change the way the District communicate and engage the parents, families, and the community at large. One of his visions was to increase participation with community members and take a more active role in School Board meetings, and the different conversations that take place regarding the educational programs available to families at different schools. This would give the community better access to school personnel. Ms. Powers advised she was aware locating information or resources had been problematic in the past. The Public Affairs Department would be known as the Department of Communications and Engagement. The Communications side manages all the internal and external communications, press releases and other information regarding the School District. The Community Engagement side would be proactive and foster relationships with community members and families. They will take a more active role and attend various advisory groups throughout the County, listen to what the community needs from the School District, and try to build a bridge between what was available in the community, what is needed in the schools, and connect the dots. She announced this was the goal for the first year. Ms. Powers advised the goal for year two would be to establish more in-depth programs and representatives from the District would work to increase community engagement and make presentations across the District. Ms. Powers left her card and contact information. If there were questions about a program, ideas the Board was considering, or information they needed, the Board should contact her. 2 Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 2015 Chair Waldman inquired if they would be contacting SAC committees and Ms. Powers responded they would. Many challenges parents face involve a lack of information and Ms. Powers acknowledged it was difficult for parents to have access to early learning centers and to pay for them. Ms. Powers advised they presently have a small team. In addition to Ms. Powers, there are two specialists that will cover the district, which is divided into a north and south area. She explained Boynton Beach is in the south area. Ideally, there should be at least five representatives per area and using the regional and best practice models; they should have 10 representatives per City, because each school has specific needs. Ms. Powers explained to be effective, there needs to be a representative connected to the community to work with the parent liaison to develop training and sessions for the families. As they moved forward, their goals would be met. They would advise the School Board of their progress and seek to have more school representatives. Discussion followed about Title 1 schools and concerns about community involvement with Boynton Beach Schools. Ms. Powers acknowledged teachers are overwhelmed and there was no standardized procedure in place for School District personnel to communicate with the community. Title 1 schools handle communication one way, the Multi- Cultural Department handles it a different way and there is much duplication. She commented it was important for parents to know where to go for resources and questions. Dr. Hayden agreed and gave an example of a breakdown in communication at her school. Some parents were unaware school hours had changed, effective after spring break, when they arrived to drop off their children when school resumed. The information was on the marquee. She agreed not all parents have access to newsletter feeds and the connections in each community were different. Ms. Powers agreed. There are many different channels that could be used to communicate, and the only way to improve was for parents to participate in their child's education. As the transition occurs, they would have improved and learned what was needed. Ms. Colebrooks suggested they contact the community churches and visit the schools to obtain a representative. She explained Boynton Beach schools on the east side have strong support and individuals that could help. Dr. North recalled the Children's Services Council's efforts to implement a family- community partnership. They divided the County into four sections and identified churches, non - profits and civic centers to engage families. She noted it is not possible to engage the family without engaging the community. She hoped the program would come to fruition. Ms. Powers explained they would hold community input meetings. A new superintendent would come on board and she hoped he/she would work proactively and collaboratively with the community partners, and understand the value of the family, School District and community. Ms. Powers explained she will reach out to the Board to determine the community's needs. 3 Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 201 Chair Waldman suggested if staffing allowed, they connect with the SAC Committees from the elementary school levels and up. Additionally, the Black History /Heritage Festival would be held in February and they could attend and get their name out there. The 5K Barrier Free Run/Walk at Hunters Run would also be held providing opportunities to forward their information. Chair Waldman thanked Ms. Powers for attending. Gerta Klein, Boynton Beach Mental Health Committee, introduced the Committee. Woodrow Hay was the Chair, and Ron Washam and Paul Zito, Board members, were also present. Ms. Klein distributed information on the Committee's efforts, goals and objectives, and provided the history of the Committee. They make presentations to different organizations and hold workshops. A year and a half ago, they created a flyer, "Break the Silence" geared to parents to learn how to advocate for their afflicted loved ones in the School District. The meeting drew over 100 people and Mayor Taylor and former Mayor Woodrow Hay both pledged support to break the silence of mental illness and promote awareness of it in the community. It was suggested they become involved with the League of Cities. Boca Raton's Promise Group, a non - profit group, joined the League of Cities and they planned on holding a presentation. A Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, (SAHSA) brochure provided information on Mental Health, designed for Mayors to address behavioral health issues in communities. The County's Action Alliance for Mental Health educates students and teachers about mental health, and Mayor Taylor commented the SAMSA brochure provided valuable information. He thought it would be helpful to form a committee. In June, they held their first retreat. They contacted the new principal at Boynton Beach High School and held a logo contest to develop a logo for the initiative. On December 16 a prize was awarded to Henryk Grines who won the contest. They will make business cards and materials with the logo. Christie Holt, a Boynton Beach High School Psychology teacher, had commented to Ms. Klein there was a dirth of African - American mental health therapists, and thought a para - professional should come to the school so students could learn of the range of opportunities in the field. Ms. Klein agreed. On February 24 10 different mental health professionals would visit Boynton Beach High School. About 150 psychology students can meet the professionals and decide which area of mental health positions they would like to pursue. A survey and suggestions for the next event visit would be solicited and Chair Waldman requested he receive a copy of what the students learned from the event. He thought a student representative from one of the classes attend the meeting and apprise the Board of his/her thoughts. Ms. Klein explained the Committee is comprised of 12 people, and they want the community to become engaged in this effort. They welcome input and suggestions how to improve their mission. 4 Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 2015 Ms. Lundquist thought it was marvelous to expose the students to the fields available in the mental health arena. Chair Waldman inquired if they would pursue the initiative on the elementary school level. He thought there were issues on the elementary school levels that could be addressed. Ms. Klein responded they would and the Action Alliance was active in the schools. Chair Waldman explained kids speak with other kids and inquired if students could be trained to listen to other students to help. Dr. Hayden commented they had peer counsellors at one time, but did not believe the program was available any more. Many children did not know how to deal with their feelings and emotions, and the end result was negative. She noted a situation that occurred at a high school that could have been averted had there been help available. She quoted one guidance counsellor that stated "we don't do that anymore." Students have to have someone to listen to them. They grow up still not knowing how to handle matters and the cycle continues. Last year, for the first time, the Action Alliance Committee had a behavioral health symposium for school faculty and nurses. On June 11 there will be another symposium. Another movement, "Mental Health: First Aid for Adults", is community outreach sponsored by the Alfred Jewish Family and Children's Service. It is an eight hour session, taught over two days, that was a valuable resource. She noted several Palm Beach County Sheriffs attended the training session, which helps laypersons and others learn how to handle the many situations that arise from mental illness. Ms. Klein offered to help the Committee become aware of the situation and would help the Boynton Beach community in any way. They were present to help, and she left information with Chair Waldman. Ms. Colebrooks inquired if the community was aware of Emotional Behavior Disability (EBD) Schools, with students who were diagnosed with emotional issues. She explained the teachers there were wonderful teachers, but they were burned out. The teachers have to be certified, and she suggested reaching out to those schools and staff. Chair Waldman agreed it would be worthwhile. Freedom Shores Elementary School was an EBD school. They recently had an incident with a six-year old student, experiencing a serious mental breakdown. Chair Waldman thanked the Mental Health Committee for being present. He thought training students to be of service to other students would be beneficial. (Lori and Kathleen Wilkinson arrived at 6:33 p.m.) Dr. Hayden gave contact information for the Congress Avenue Exceptional Education Guidance Counsellor, Ms. Katz. 5 Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 2015 VIII. Old Business A. Donation Request from Boynton each High School Football program. Chair Waldman was recently ill and had not spoken to the school about the football program, but commented the football coach retired. Dr. North suggested if the request was not filled out completely, the request should be rejected. Motion Dr. North moved that any application for a donation request coming before the Board needs to be completed in its entirety, or it will be automatically rejected and sent back to the sender. Ms. Spells Anderson seconded the motion. It was noted that would not preclude the sender from resubmitting. The motion unanimously passed. B. Reading Oasis at Rolling Green Elementary — Report Ms. Wilkinson advised the Reading Oasis Grand Opening on November 21, 2014, was great. There were many dignitaries and a lot of community and parental support. The room was beautiful and had 1,400 books. Rolling Green was a low income, low socio- economic school, and there was a need for this program. The Gold Coast Knights Kiwanis Club will continue the project by having Saturday readings once a month for about two hours. They will provide lunch donated by local restaurants for those who attend. The first Saturday event was held January 17 , and the next would be February 19 Parents can read with their children. Adults volunteering for the program will train parents and provide an opportunity for parents and children to come together. Volunteers were welcome. The hours were 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. C. Shred-A-Thon Ms. Wilkinson announced the last Shred-A-Thon went very well and raised about $1,100. She advised it is a family-owned company and they bent over backwards to assist the Board. They were interested in holding another event. Ms. Wilkinson recalled they had been trying to hold events in October and May, after tax season. She suggested selecting dates, and she would approach the company. After brief discussion, Ms. Wilkinson will see if they would be available on May 2 and 16 th Chair Waldman thought raising another $1,000 would help the Board and community. Ms. Wilkinson pointed out this company was less expensive than the company they had previously used. She explained the vendor came with a completely empty truck, about the size of a garbage truck. About a half hour before the event ended, the truck was full. She explained there were people who brought trunk loads. One retired doctor bought 6 Meeting Minutes Education and Youth Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 22, 2015 60 boxes. Chair Waldman thought they would get good publicity for the next event because the Committee has been diligent about obtaining contact and email information to apprise those individuals when the next Shred-A-Thont would be held. D. Tennis Carnival (April 25) There was no report given as Vice Chair Morera, who handles the event, was not present. E. Youth Volunteer Bank/Bob Borovy Award Sherri Claude, Board Liaison, was not present to make a report. VIII. Future Meeting Dates: February 26, 2015, and March 26, 2015. Dr. North read the future meeting dates. IX. Adjournment Motion Dr. North moved to adjourn. Ms. Lundquist seconded the motion that unanimously passed. The meeting adjourned at 7:16 p.m. Catherine Cherry Minutes Specialist 020615 7