Month: February 2024

About Month: February 2024

Subscribe Feeds

February 28th School Committee Meeting Recaps

Posted on by William Garrity

February 28th Regular Meeting Recap

Click here to view the agenda and packet information for this meeting

Click here to view the meeting recording

Restricting Virtual School Enrollment – Commonwealth Virtual Schools (CMVS) are virtual schools that serve the whole state and are approved by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Under Massachusetts State Law a school committee may “restrict enrollment of its students in commonwealth virtual schools if the total enrollment of its students in commonwealth virtual schools exceeds 1 per cent of the total enrollment in its district; provided, however, that no student enrolled in a commonwealth virtual school shall be compelled to withdraw as a result of that vote.”

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has determined based on student enrollment data reported to them on October 1st, 2023 that more than 1% of students from Pittsfield are enrolled in a CMVS. Under DESE Guidelines the School Committee must vote by March 1st if it is considering restricting student enrollment in the CMVS.

Based on this information, the School Committee voted to restrict enrollment in CMVS to 1% in a 6 – 1 vote (I opposed the motion).

Continue reading “February 28th School Committee Meeting Recaps”

Upcoming School Committee Meeting and Budget Workshop February 28th, 2024

Posted on by William Garrity

Update: The Regular Meeting at 5:15pm will be recorded by PCTV. The budget workshop will not be covered however.

The next Pittsfield School Committee meeting on February 28th is being divided into two meetings, a brief regular meeting with one item on the agenda, and our first budget workshop. Both meetings will be held at Reid Middle School (950 North Street) in the Library.

The regular meeting will start at 5:15pm.

The budget workshop will start at 5:30pm or after the regular meeting adjourns.

Upcoming Regular Meeting

Click here to view the agenda for the regular meeting

Click here to view the packet information

The Pittsfield School Committee will have a meeting on Wednesday, February 28th at 5:15pm in the Reid Middle School Library (950 North Street).

Any member of the public may wish to speak during our public comment period. Public comment is limited to 3 minutes per person and the public comment period is limited to 15 minutes unless the school committee votes to extend the public comment period. Anyone wishing to speak during the public comment period may be required to sign up before the meeting starts.

Agenda Highlights

There is one item on the agenda for this meeting.

Restricting Virtual School Enrollment – Commonwealth Virtual Schools (CMVS) are virtual schools that serve the whole state and are approved by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Currently the two CMVS in the state are the Greater Commonwealth Virtual School (GCVS, and formally known as Greenfield Commonwealth Virtual School) and TEC Connections Academy Commonwealth Virtual School (TECCA).

Under Massachusetts State Law a school committee may “restrict enrollment of its students in commonwealth virtual schools if the total enrollment of its students in commonwealth virtual schools exceeds 1 per cent of the total enrollment in its district; provided, however, that no student enrolled in a commonwealth virtual school shall be compelled to withdraw as a result of that vote.”

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has determined based on student enrollment data reported to them on October 1st, 2023 that more than 1% of students from Pittsfield are enrolled in a CMVS. Under DESE Guidelines the School Committee must vote by March 1st if it is considering restricting student enrollment in the CMVS.

Based on this information, the School Committee will discuss then vote on whether or not to cap enrollment to the CMVS.

Upcoming School Committee Budget Workshop

Click here to view the agenda for the meeting

Click here to view the packet information

The Pittsfield School Committee will have its first budget workshop on Wednesday, February 28th at 5:30pm following the regular meeting in the Reid Middle School Library (950 North Street).

There will be no participation by the public for this portion of the meeting.

Agenda Highlights

  • Building an Understanding of the Budgeting Process
  • Overview of State Aid, Enrollment Projections and Grants (usually a presentation given at a regular School Committee meeting)
  • Small Group Discussions with the District Leadership Team

Newsletter

Want updates like this to be sent to your inbox every Monday? Then sign up for my weekly School Committee newsletter here!

Statement on the Death of Nex Benedict

Posted on by William Garrity

I am utterly horrified by the death of Nex Benedict, a transgender student from Oklahoma. After months of bullying due to their gender identity Nex got into a fight with three older girls on February 7th, then suddenly passed away the next day. Nex died as a result of hate against the LGBTQ+ community. Hate that has been pushed by the highest leaders of the Oklahoma educational system who put partisan politics over the safety and wellbeing of the students these leaders served. Nex did not have to die like this.

Hate has no place in any of our schools, and no LGBTQ+ student should have to suffer like Nex did. I will always push for what is best for all of our students, and to ensure that our LGBTQ+ students feel welcomed and safe in the Pittsfield Public Schools.

To all LGBTQ+ students in Pittsfield and beyond, always remember that there are people who do care about you, want to make sure you are safe, and want to see you succeed into adulthood and beyond.

Resources

Resources for LGBTQ+ Students

The Trevor Project

Rainbow Youth Project USA

For more information about the death of Nex Benedict and the impact it is having on LGBTQ+ students in Oklahoma and beyond

Rolling Stone – ‘That Could Have Been Me’: Queer Teens Mourn Nex Benedict

School Committee Meeting Recap February 14th, 2024

Posted on by William Garrity

Click here to view the agenda and packet information for this meeting
Click here to view the meeting recording

Acceptance of Donation for Taconic’s Auto Technology Program – Toyota Motors North America, Inc. is looking to donate the use of a 2023 Toyota GR86 with an estimated value of $25,723 for 5 years for Taconic’s Auto Technology Program. School Committee policy requires the committee to accept any donation of $5,000 or more to the Pittsfield Public Schools. The School Committee voted to accept the donation.

Report on Education Spending Outside of School Committee Budget and Governor’s Budget Update

Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Kristen Behnke gave the presentation. Here is the most important information:

Big takeaway: If Pittsfield was in group 11 we could possibly receive $1 million to $1.5 million more based on rough estimates. More information will come during our budget workshop on February 28th.

Discussion of Submittal of an SOI with the MSBA Regarding Crosby Elementary School and the Submittal’s Role in the Restructuring Planning – The district is looking at a potential new building project on the Crosby site as a part of its restructuring project. In order to get state funding for the project, the Superintendent must submit a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) by Friday, April 12th. The School Committee and the City Council must vote to authorize the Superintendent to submit the SOI.

Superintendent Curtis gave an overview of the work the School Building Needs Commission and the school restructuring consultant DRA (who were the architects for the Taconic High School building project) have done. Here are some highlights of the presentation:

The proposed Joint City Council and School Committee Workshop would also include a tour of the Crosby and Conte sites.

This is the district’s master plan spanning out to 2046. Click here to view a larger version.

When asked about PHS administration mentioned that it would cost approximately $120 million to renovate PHS. It would also be difficult to run two building projects at once.

Approval of Memorandums of Understanding with the United Educators of Pittsfield and the Pittsfield Pittsfield Federation of School Employees/AFT, Local 1315, Bus Drivers’ & Attendants’ Unit – These Memorandums were tabled until our next regular meeting.

Next School Committee Meetings

At the moment our next meeting will be our budget workshop on Wednesday, February 28th at 5:30pm at Reid Middle School. Due to the nature of the workshop format this meeting will not be recorded (though the first portion of the meeting which is a group presentation might be, more information to come).

Our next regular meeting that is scheduled is Wednesday, March 13th at 6pm at City Hall in City Council Chambers.

Newsletter

Want updates like this to be sent to your inbox every Monday? Then sign up for my weekly School Committee newsletter here!

Upcoming School Committee Meeting February 14th, 2024

Posted on by William Garrity

Click here to view the agenda for the meeting

Click here to view the packet information

The Pittsfield School Committee will have a meeting on Wednesday, February 14th at 6pm in City Hall Council Chambers (70 Allen St). The meeting will also be broadcasted on PCTV Channel 1302, PCTV’s Facebook page, and PCTV Select.

Any member of the public may wish to speak during our public comment period. Public comment is limited to 3 minutes per person and the public comment period is limited to 15 minutes unless the school committee votes to extend the public comment period. Anyone wishing to speak during the public comment period may be required to sign up before the meeting starts.

Agenda Highlights

Acceptance of Donation for Taconic’s Auto Technology Program – Toyota Motors North America, Inc. is looking to donate a 2023 2023 Toyota GR86 with an estimated value of $25,723 for Taconic’s Auto Technology Program. School Committee policy requires the committee to accept any donation of $5,000 or more to the Pittsfield Public Schools.

Report on Education Spending Outside of School Committee Budget and
Governor’s Budget Update

Discussion of Submittal of an SOI with the MSBA Regarding Crosby Elementary
School and the Submittal’s Role in the Restructuring Planning – The district is looking at a potential new building project on the Crosby site as a part of its restructuring project. In order to get state funding for the project, the Superintendent must submit a Statement of Interest (SOI) to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) by Friday, April 12th. The School Committee and the City Council must vote to authorize the Superintendent to submit the SOI. More information will be discussed at the meeting.

Executive Session – There will be an executive session to discuss negotiations with the United Educators of Pittsfield (teachers union), the Pittsfield Educational Administrator’s Association (educational administrators union), and the Pittsfield Federation of School Employees/AFT, Local 1315, Bus Drivers’ & Attendants’ Unit.

Approval of Memorandums of Understanding with the United Educators of Pittsfield and the Pittsfield Pittsfield Federation of School Employees/AFT, Local 1315, Bus Drivers’ & Attendants’ Unit – These Memorandums will be discussed in executive session and then the School Committee will vote on them in open session. The Memorandums of Understanding will be released after the executive session.