Regional Governing Board Meeting Minutes: October 16, 2006

Lamb called the meeting to order at 6:15pm, and read aloud the proposed agenda for the meeting, whereupon Peaslee moved and Johnson seconded a motion to approve the agenda as presented, and the motion passed unanimously.


1. Public Comments: None presented.


2. Consent Agenda: Peaslee moved and Kinney seconded a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. After members and staff noted that in Vendor Warrant #20

- check #6803: is payment in total for modular furniture installed in the main office, and this money was accrued from FY06

- check #6817: is reimbursement for video production equipment, all of which was funded through the Perkins grant
- check #6792: is payment for a tarp for a CDC owned truck

- check #6818: the negative items shown against this check are for returned products

and in Vendor Warrant #23

- check #6849; is mileage reimbursement for a staff member attending a technical conference

- check #6864: is payment for an employee's physical examination above and beyond the amount covered by insurance

- check #6886: is another payment for a physical examination above the amount covered by insurance

and that transcripts supporting the Nomination of the Horticulture teacher will be forthcoming, the motion passed unanimously. The Consent Agenda, as approved, included

- the Minutes of September 18, 2006, written by Redding

- SWVRTSD Payroll Warrants #15 and #16 in the combined amount of $63,406.31

- SWVRTSD Payroll Warrants #18 and #19 in the combined amount of $71,223.32

- SWVRTSD Vendor Warrant #20 in the amount $82,903.53

- SWVRTSD Vendor Warrant #23 in the amount $19,069.06

- SWVRTSD DECA Field Trip Request to Washington DC 11/1/06 - 11/5/06

- the Nomination of William Steller, Horticulture and Landscaping Design Teacher.



3. Treasurer's Report: Palmer briefly reviewed revenues and disbursements for September as well as the first quarter of FY07 and as detailed in the Treasurer's Cash Flow and Account Balances as of Sept 30, 2006 - Cumulative Report (dated 10/3/06, a copy of which was included in the Agenda packet), noting that

- as a result of recent legislation (Act 130), tuition for SVSU students is now paid through MAU rather than the SVSU elementary districts, and the remaining 2/3rds of the payment will be received after 11/30/06 when all assessments are paid


- the closing cash balance for the period of $715,796.50 is "very respectable"

- given the recent rise in interest rates, interest earnings are increasing substantially.

Lamb thanked Palmer for her report.


4. Committee Reports:

a. Marketing: DeLucia reported that

- students in outlying towns in the SWVRTSD who need transportation to attend the Purple Thursday events, which run for two hours beginning at 10:30 am, should contact the CDC main office

- zoning regulations limit the new CDC sign to 40 sq. ft.

- Nicki Forest and Barb Gorbaty are working on the sign project and their efforts are appreciated

b. Facilities: Peaslee noted that the CDC/MAU lease agreement should be ready for review at the next meeting.

c. Education: Letourneau noted that the Education Committee has not met recently and that the Innovation grant has been approved.


5. Superintendent's Report: Knapp commented/reported on the following

- he recently wrote an article comparing the differences between a General Education Diploma (GED) and a high school diploma, and noted that skills students acquire by taking technical courses are never tested on the GED

- a meeting is scheduled 10/19/06 to continue discussion about the redistribution of students within the SVSU, which will have an indirect impact on the CDC, and urged members to attend

- he will be one of the presenters at the 10/17/06 Vermont Superintendent's Association meeting, the topic of which is to explore ways to encourage educators to consider moving into superintendency positions

- improving school safety continues to be a critical need, and safety issues are being reviewed by building administrators in all SVSU locations

- an in-depth demographic analysis extending out ten years is being completed for all SVSU districts, and this will be of significant value to the CDC in projecting future enrollments

- there are currently fewer students in Vermont than there were 100 years ago, and graduating students and young families are not remaining in Vermont, due in part to the lack of jobs as well as rising property values and taxes

- the CDC needs to align its courses with the business needs of the community.

In subsequent discussion, members and staff variously noted that

- in order to get new industry into the state, the "mindset" of municipal and government leaders needs to change (Kinney)

- enrollment projections continue to decline at least for the next three years


6. Director's Report: After noting that the CDC actively promotes business growth in the region, Oyama reported on the following

- the new Internet access arrangement has been a "plus" for both CDC and MAU

- both CDC and MAU recently underwent a containment drill, the results of which are being reviewed, and after procedures are revised, if necessary, there will be another drill

- once finalized, members will receive a copy of the containment procedures

- a map has been attached to the MAU - CDC Lease Agreement which clearly outlines area used by the CDC (a copy of which was included in the Agenda packet)

- she has spoken with the MAU high school principal about the need for new signage, and students are participating in the design of the sign for the CDC

- the Purple Thursday Career Fairs are underway, the schedule for which was included in the Agenda packet, and board members are welcome to attend


- 40 students from the CDC, MAU, Arlington, and Burr and Burton schools attended the recent Women Can Do conference which explored non-traditional occupations for women.

Oyama also reported that the CDC has been awarded two program innovation grants, one for $50,000 to establish a cosmetology program, and the second is for establishing a joint engineering project with MAU, Grace Christian School and Abacus Co.. After a brief discussion during which members noted that

- some of the furniture and fixtures for the cosmetology program will be donated

- enrollment in the program will range between 12 - 15 students

Peaslee moved and Goodhue seconded a motion to authorize CDC administration and staff to establish a cosmetology program, to begin second semester FY07, and to use the funds provided by the program innovation grant to underwrite the program, and the motion passed unanimously.


7. Other:

a. Student Representative to the Board: In response to a question from Lamb, Oyama noted that she has discussed this issue with teachers, and that a process is being developed to nominate/elect/appoint student representatives to the board. Lamb recommended that this process should be determined quickly and that a student(s) should join the board as soon as possible.

b. Contract Negotiations: Lamb noted that attorneys who are interested in participating in the negotiations process will be asked to meet with the board, and that costs for this kind of service are not yet known. After a brief discussion,

- Goodhue moved and Peaslee seconded a motion to have Lamb, DeLucia, and Letourneau be members of the Administrators Negotiating team, and the motion passed unanimously.

- Peaslee moved and Kinney seconded a motion to appoint Letourneau as the RGB representative to both the Teachers and the Educational Support Personnel (ESP) negotiating teams and the motion passed unanimously.

c. CDC Website: Montgomery reported that the three response s to a Request for Proposal for design and maintenance of the CDC website are being reviewed and that members should contact him with any ideas they may have about what should be included in the website.

d. Partnerships: Lamb suggested that the CDC needs to more actively "grow our industry partnerships" and determine ways to better market its offerings to adults.


8. FYI: Members noted that the Expenditure and Revenue Reports for September 2006 were included in the Agenda packet for informational purposes only.


At 7:10pm, and after noting that there was no need for an Executive Session, Peaslee moved and Kinney seconded a motion to move to adjourn and the motion passed unanimously.