MDT Meeting Minutes for June 5, 2007

Attended by:  Amanda Broun, Carolyne Albert-Garvey, Marcia Jackson, Vicki Otten,Pam Joos, Martha Saccocio, Brenda Smith, Halina Cymerman, Jessica Franklin, Nancy Martell-Stevenson, Tim Welsh

100K Fenty Money

After reviewing the feedback from teachers, parents and examining the staffing needs of the school, Principal Albert-Garvey has decided that the best use of this money is to add a third 6th grade teacher.  The principal announced that a current 6th grade teacher, Ms. Levy, will be out on personal leave until January 2008.  To fill the 6th grade classes, Principal Albert-Garvey will be offering some slots to students currently on our waitlist. 

The remaining 25K will be used to hire a special education aide to work with our new special ed teachers.  It was noted by a parent at the meeting that Murch has had 14 special ed teachers in 16 years.  With the addition of an aide, the school hopes to alleviate some of the load on the special ed teachers.

The decision on how to best utilize our space, including the new demountable, will be made by the new principal.

95K Incentive Money

This federal money, which can only be used for professional development, curriculum support and materials (i.e. not staffing), was awarded to Murch for its success in meeting annual yearly progress goals.  The deadline to let DCPS know how Murch plans to spend the money was Wednesday, June 6th.  In anticipation of receiving incentive money this year and knowing the quick turnaround time, the teachers and principal had previously discussed spending a significant amount of the money for supporting the implementation of responsive classroom.   This will include initial training for some staff, teachers and aides and continued training for teachers who have already attended some responsive classroom workshops.   Additionally, two parent workshops are being planned for next year.  Books for each teacher will also be purchased to assist them in using responsive classroom on a daily basis.  The principal will also purchase a site license for Ripple Effects, a computer based life skills program that will assist the new counselor.  This program will be helpful for teachers, students and their families.

The other significant need identified by parents and teachers is in the area of technology.  Some of our equipment does not work or is too old and will be replaced using this incentive money.  Helping teachers to integrate technology into the curriculum will be addressed through 4 days of teacher training throughout the school year.  To insure that the new computers are utilized, a request was made to the HSA to pay for IT support for the school year.

Miscellaneous

There was a request to put Murch’s weighted student formula budget on the website.  The current document has confidential information in it, so once all the end of school year events have passed,  the principal will be able to make the edits and get this up on the website.

Information about the student awards ceremony for 4th – 6th graders will be sent home by their classroom teachers and in the HSA newsletter.

The meeting was adjourned at 6:45

Signed
P Joos
6/7/07