After School Task Force - February 23, 2005

Madison Metropolitan School District Madison, Wisconsin Art Rainwater, Superintendent
BOARD OF EDUCATION Minutes for After School Task Force February 23, 2005		Hoyt Building 3802 Regent Street, Room 21 Madison, Wisconsin

The task force meeting was called to order by Co-Chair Sue Abplanalp at 9:02 a.m.

MEMBERS PRESENT: Sue Abplanalp, Janet Dyer, Laurie Frank, Liz Fritz, Wendy Rakower, Ed Sadlowski

MEMBERS ABSENT: Fabiola Hamdan, Sara Jenny

STAFF PRESENT: Barbara Lehman-Recording Secretary

1. Approval of Minutes

It was moved by Wendy Rakower and seconded by Liz Fritz that the minutes from the After School Task Force meeting of February 11, 2005be approved as distributed. Motion unanimously carried by those present.

2. Public Appearances

Joanne Bonesho, Wisconsin Youth Co., made some specific comments on the work of the task force relative to the guidelines for an after school advisory board: 1) having as a goal the oversight of the guidelines; 2) including the list of items that was discussed under "Results Desired" at the last meeting, including as a purpose and outcome that the advisory board serve as a resource to the Madison Board of Education; 3) under "Membership" she wanted to put three providers and a high school student back on the table for discussion.

3. Announcements

There were no announcements.

4. Proposal to Develop Guidelines for the Creation of a Joint After School Advisory Committee for After School Programs

(Packets included revised guidelines. A copy is attached to the original of these minutes.)

#1: Goal: What is the specific purpose for this Board?

Language Edits: Bullet #1: "Try to facilitate accessibility for all students regardless of income or special needs." Bullet #2: "To help resolve space issues." Bullet #3: "To help resolve conflicts that could not be resolved with the principal." Bullet #4: okay. Bullet #5: "Solicit resources regardless of income and special needs to support accessibility and quality after school programming (i.e., Field of Interest, etc.)." Add a bullet: "Oversee MMSD Guidelines for After School Programming."

#2: Results desired: What is the Board expected to achieve?

Language Edits: Change all titles to "After School Advisory Board (ASAB)." Eliminate #2 and add a seventh bullet under #1 "To serve as a resource to the Board of Education."

#3: Level of Authority: To whom is the Board accountable?

Language Edits: Change the title to Advisory School Advisory Board.

#4: Communication Linkages: Who must be kept informed of progress? How should they be kept informed?

Language Edits: Change format to bullets. Bullet #2: "The ASAB will meet at least four times per year or as needed." Bullet #3: "Minutes will be posted on the MMSD web site." Bullet #4: "A report will be submitted to the Board of Education at least once per year, or as needed."

#5: Membership: Who should be represented on the Board? How should they be selected?

Language Edits: Make it "rotating membership." Add one high school student. Add one more provider in addition to MSCR. Ask Legal Counsel about how the rotating membership should work and the length of terms.

5. Proposed Work Plan to Address the Charge of the After School Task Force

(An updated charge statement matrix was included in the packet. A copy is attached to the original of these minutes.)

Charge Statement #1:

Language Edits: Principal and provider should meet to resolve the problem. Reference the evaluation plan? Child care providers should have an outreach plan in place to assure access for historically marginalized students. Decide on the appendix later. Put a period after "students" in the last sentence. Revise last sentence, "It is imperative that the district and all after school providers work together in an attempt to provide access for all children." "The district should not be the sole provider for after school care for all for all low income students. The After School Task Force recommends a collaboration that the district and private providers should collaborate to assure access for all students, including students with special needs." Then use the rest of the language regarding not enough space, collaborate to provide access, outreach, waiting lists, etc.

Charge Statement #2:

Language Edits: "Yes, the MMSD should create an After School Advisory Board to support a partnership between the MMSD and community chare care providers. Purpose is attached in Appendix A."

Charge Statement #3:

Language Edits: When the principal is considering changes, quality and cost and outreach should be considered. Outreach should be somewhere else. "Quality, cost, and accessibility," "within the revised MMSD after school guidelines." Board policy exists as it is now so that after school programs can run their own program. Once the fees are eliminated, then the district will have to contract with all 21 agencies. Return to this issue after the guidelines. "...in addition to cost, quality and accessibility should be considered."

Charge Statement #4:

Language Edits: Put in 1, 2 and 3. Change to "operating in district facilities" throughout number 4.

Charge Statement #5:

Language Edits: Send yearly evaluations to principals as well. There was some discussion about having Research and Evaluation do the evaluations and the difficulty associated with each of the providers wanting to do their own questions. Provides data for the meetings with the principals and gives the ASAB overall, across-the-board information. Add "These evaluations are in addition to those evaluations conducted by individual providers which may be shared with the principals." Also reference the city certification based on "City of Madison Elementary School Age Program Standards, Attachment E."

Charge Statement #6:

Language Edits: Change that word to "reference." Place it right after the standards that will be available from the principal. Quality indicators should be a new paragraph. Do the same thing as before, "In addition to academic support, all after school programs operating in district facilities should minimally include the following program indicators:...."

Charge Statement #7:

Language Edits: Create a flow chart as an attachment. "While following the after school guidelines..." at the end of the first sentence. "For potential changes in programs and conflicts and problems, the principal and after school staff will meet at least quarterly." Then #1 - "potential changes in programs, conflicts or problems will attempt to be resolved with the after school staff. Guidelines contain that language; probably will be rewriting that. #1 "Principal and provider staff will meet at least quarterly for open communication." #2 "Attempts will be made to resolve potential changes in programs, conflicts or problems informally." #2: use C1. #3: Current policy has a different chain of command involving the assistant superintendent. Clarification should happen within a stated number of days. "If the issue is not resolved, concerns will be referred to the ASAB and a meeting will be convened within two weeks." #4—"If an issue is not resolved, it will be referred to the Assistant Superintendent who will meet with the stakeholders in a timely fashion." "If the issue is not resolved, then it will be referred to the Board of Education." Use "conflicts, problems, etc.," throughout the document. Clarify timelines for the meetings within the guidelines. At the January meeting, formal notification should be given to all day care providers to plan for next year. #8—Guidelines have to be put in place. "To determine the provider..." "Using steps...." "Current provider will remain unless notified by some date if provider is being considered for nonrenewal, the current after school provider will be notified by the principal...." Recommend a date. "Then the following guidelines should be used to determine a new provider..." 1) take out "will be recognized." See steps 1-5 charge statement #7. Building permits are currently issued by June 15; after that it is first come-first served for space. Not sure what impact the new permit process will have on that date. #2—All students should have equal access. #3—Parents concerns will be taken into consideration. #4—Early evaluation results should be part of the decision-making process. #5—Recommended appeal process should be utilized for decision-making steps 1-5. Appeal process is good. Took it out of #7. #9—1) "..their internal complaint process." 2) Appendix F that is the log. 3) you provide the forms to the principal. "Parents will be asked to submit their concern(s) in writing to the principal. A copy will be given to the provider by the principal." How will parents know that their concern is going to be shared with the provider? Should be automatically given to the provider? Should be required to follow up with the provider. Parent would not need to be named. Most of it can be done orally between the principal and the provider. #3—Principal can use their judgment about talking or putting something in writing.

Recessed at 11:34 a.m.

Reconvened at 12:06 p.m.

Discussion continued: #10—Almost the same as #1. Use the first piece of #1 then add the issue raised by Mr. Sadlowski. Need to address the wait list issue. What priority do people get based on ability to pay (Free and Reduced Lunch (FRE)). Clarify that. Use entire language of #1? District and community should collaborate to provide access for all students regardless of income or special needs. Currently the MMSD does not have space or...work together to provide access and the outreach piece. Then saying that tax funds should be used--#11 is the next thing. #10—get rid of first and second paragraphs. Endowment fund to address scholarships. Eliminate #1 and 2, drop #1 with the modification. #11—Yes, and we believe this should continue. Schools with high poverty enrollment should be providing for children who need access to programming. "Yes, current programs offered by MSCR should continue." #12—should add that the possibility of expanding programs like Orchard Ridge, not only when there are two programs at a school. Using it as a collaborative model. Just collaborate with after school providers in creatively using funds. In addition to providing scholarships we encourage the ASAB and the district to explore creative options to increase accessibility to district resources.

There was consensus that Item 2 be taken up again.

2. Public Appearances

Joanne Bonesho, Wisconsin Youth Company, suggested that the response to #10 could be answered with a yes with the caveat that resources and funds should be utilized to maximize the accessibility and eliminate wait lists. For #3 she keeps hearing about differences in cost to the district for facility use when it is MSCR vs. another provider. A second part of that question provides an opportunity to clarify how that cost determination will be made. No matter who is running the program, there is still a cost that can be reimbursed; there is a need for a uniform factor to be used in determining the cost no matter who is the provider. For #7 she proposed language talking about quarterly meetings hitting a discrepancy in the guidelines because it says three times per year. She thought it a nice idea to have quarterly meetings. For #8 she noted that at times providers or priorities of space are sometimes based on size and scope of the program. It is conceivable that one program could be providing services to a range of special needs students that might need access to ADA facilities. For #9, part 1) the complaint process is a big piece of city accreditation and requires that the form and process have certain elements and have a life after the parents write the complaint. To provide more clarity each provider will have a complaint process that includes the entire form that allows for details, action steps, and outcome with copies available on parent tables as well as the school office. For #8- not sure if this is the place—if no agreement then to the ASAB. For #12—Needs the ASAB - one of the issues that prompted this was that providers felt that replacements were done without advance notice. Might want to give that more strength "prior to the replacement of any program," rather than just a straight out replacement. If a provider is asked not to return in January, and the ASAB is meeting three times a year, it is almost too late to bring that to the forefront. Need a provision that will determine the replacement of a program and that the ASAB will convene to take up that issue. Date and process for determining space is typically an evergreen clause in the contract between the district and provider. Would be nice if space use request could be accepted one month after the decisions are made.

Matt Merrill, YMCA of Dane County, supported adding considerations for Items 7 and 11 of the task force charges. Supported clarifying the communication process between the current after school provider if a new provider is looking to come in. He did not think it happens solely through the principal. Good to have it spelled out little more; that is a gray area. #11—Do we have to think about the ramifications on the current programming (funds) or have some discussion about changing providers if those tax funds dry up?

Language Edits #13 - No, talked about eliminating that. According to Roger Price, in order to waive the funds, MMSD must have a contract with every agency every year. Would have to go before the board every year. If the fee exists, building permits are issued with attached fees, and takes the place of that contract.

Language Edits: The policy 6490 Class IV...gives legal responsibility to anyone using the space. Recommend continuing the reduced fees. "Yes, we recommend continuing the current fees." Do not want to get into fees every year. There is collaboration that exists with other facility users. Maintain the current fee structure and recognize the service provided to the school as benefiting the children and families.

6. Proposal to Develop Guidelines for MMSD After School Programming

Philosophy Statement: Omit the intent to support only one program at each site. Omit 1, 2 and 3. Replace with the following: 1) Take out "the" and say "district facilities" and in the 2^nd sentence. 2) Change to say they "will be charged." Should not change any of it. Omit these being negotiated with the principal. 3) Last sentence....and "approve" in "April" ok. "Non-district School Age Child Care programs shall be charged." Keep fee piece. Take out principal piece relative to negotiations. Talk about space later.

Prior to June 15: This has to do with building permits and affects everyone. Do not know what the cut-off date is. Believe it is policy that principals have until a certain date, then MSCR, then child care, then everyone else (open to the public). We can make recommendations to the Board but Class VI is policy. "Grantee" should be "granted." Recommend that the date be moved to January for changes in providers? If the space is not changing, could reserve space prior to that date and not permit it for other programs.

By January 15 school must inform the program and program must respond about whether the program will continue. If nothing is said about the possibility of a change, provider can assume they will be renewed and can then have discussion with the principal about space. By January 31 every year, principal must inform the current non-district child care program of any changes or concerns.

"The provider must notify the principal of their intent to discontinue service to that school or that they will be participating for the next school year by January 31."

Space: Cut and paste into here from charge statement and add that steps 1-5 will apply. Need to be careful about space and build in requests for exemptions. Very few waiting lists exist. Waiting lists can be constituted by however the providers handle it (a name on a piece of paper could justify a waiting list). That is part of the effort that the principal and provider have to make. Space shall not be used if a teacher has been under contract on to that time. "Building principal and program provider will work together to identify space appropriate for programming and storage to meet the growing need for after school programming." "When the school has to use the designated space, appropriate alternative space will be provided and every effort will be made to provide reasonable advanced notice." Quarterly meetings will help with that. School calendars and weekly bulletins should be utilized. Encourage every after school provider to have a mailbox in the main office and receive all information relevant to school events."

Communication: Take charge statement information and put it here. Providers shall have a mailbox in the main office. Drop the quarterly meetings from the charge statement and change to "...at least four meetings in the fall, January, spring and summer." Drop in conflict resolution. Add the four points under communication. Suggest that programs provide to principals names and phone numbers (including home numbers) of all staff of after school programs and updates throughout the year; City accreditation reviews, etc. (should happen during quarterly meetings). That should happen during the quarterly meetings. List of kids with days they are attending. Make sure teachers know to.

Procedures for Adding, Continuing or Discontinuing an After School Program: Bullet 1: delete. Bullet 2: change to "student population." Bullet 3: System or plan in place. Cut and paste from #1. Might be able to eliminate it. Same as #1 if it goes here. Bullet #4: Included in the charge statements. Get rid of all barriers to participation (fees, space, special needs, etc.). Bullet #6: cut and paste goal of the program then #4 are the actual goals. Bullet #7: That is under the standards for accreditation. Should say that all the standards for accreditation must be followed. And charge statements 1, 2, 3; should not need additional things here unless something is not covered in there. Class VI: permits are issued. It is MMSD expectation that these procedures will be followed daily by all providers in all schools. Put in Class VI permits 1, 2 #3 and take out everything else. Cut and paste charge statement #5. Only thing kept was bullets 2 and 3. Find another place for evaluations.

Goals: Paragraph 1: take out "as an extension of the school" seeks to complement children's learning experiences by: take out first sentence. Bullet 1: Stop at "capabilities--social and emotional." Bullet #2: Tentatively delete 2^nd sentence. "...between adults, adults and children, and children and their peers." Bullet #3: "Teach children positive conflict resolution and problem solving techniques. Bullet #4: Reinforce efforts for students to become actively engaged in learning through positive experiences. Support and reinforce schools' efforts for students to actively engage in learning through positive experiences. Offer a variety of choices, materials and activities, etc. Bullet #6: Under charge statements. Last bullet: Encourage positive family involvement by including families as volunteers and through regular communication. Change "parents" to "families."

Expected Outcomes: Bullet #1: ok. Bullet #2: "Grow in having empathy, etc." Bullet #3: Take out "nonviolently." Use conflict resolution. Growth in all these areas: having empathy and sensitivity, seeking and resolving conflicts appropriately, developing goals and working toward accomplishment of these goals, etc. Add "valuing academic achievement."

Student Expectations: Merge with #5? Change title, "Student expectations in after school programs." Cannot apply school code of conduct. "Students shall demonstrate...."

Adult Expectations: Add to title, "in after school programs." Delete whole first paragraph. Add as a bullet, "The importance of adults positively relating to students providing positive learning experiences and reinforcing important character qualities is critical." "Adult staff and volunteers shall:..." Keep bullets 1, 2, 3. Delete bullet #4. Bullet #5: "Demonstrate appropriate and positive developmentally appropriate language at all times." Add another bullet, "...using positive behavior guidance techniques." Use developmentally appropriate language at all times. P. 4 #1: "Staff shall develop and utilize activities and enhance skills and engage children." Delete #2. Bullet #3: ok. Last bullet: "Teach the children appropriate ways to win and lose within the structure of competitive games and fair play." Maybe add to #1: "Provide a welcoming, safe, and healthy environment."

Next meeting Friday, March 4, 8:30 a.m., at East YMCA, on Cottage Grove Roadto review everything and plan the Board of Education presentation.

7. Other Business

There was no other business.

8. Adjournment

It was moved by Liz Fritz and seconded by Ed Sadlowski to adjourn the meeting at 2:50 p.m. Motion unanimously carried by those present.

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