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| Madison Metropolitan School District Madison, Wisconsin Art Rainwater, Superintendent | ||
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| BOARD OF EDUCATION Minutes for Community Partnerships January 26, 2004 |
Doyle Administration Building 545 West Dayton Street, Room 103 Madison, Wisconsin |
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The Partnerships Committee meeting was called to order by Chair Ray Allen at 6:30 p.m.
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Ray Allen, Carol Carstensen
CITIZEN MEMBERS PRESENT: Mary Ellen Johnson, Don Severson
BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: Ruth Robarts
CITIZEN MEMBERS ABSENT: None
OTHER BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Bill Clingan, Bill Keys
STAFF PRESENT: Valencia Douglas, Mary Gulbrandsen, Roger Price, Art Rainwater, Clarence Sherrod, Ken Syke, Barbara Lehman-Recording Secretary
1. Approval of Minutes
2. Public Appearances
There were no public appearances
3. Announcements
There were no announcements.
4. Personal Finance Courses
(Packets included the MMSD plan for implementation of Assembly Bill 94 (11/24/03). A copy is attached to the original of these minutes.)
Ray Allen noted that this discussion began two months ago with a presentation. The committee was expecting an update on what is going on in other school districts and how the program can be implemented in the MMSD. The Superintendent noted that the bill was up for a vote tomorrow in the state legislature.
David Mancl, Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, distributed documents made available at the first presentation (copies are attached to the original of these minutes and included a copy of the presentation (1/26/04), the final report from the Governor's Task Force on Financial Education (8/02), a financial planning program information kit, and a flyer advertising the Wisconsin Jumpstart Coalition institutes. He stated that it is well documented that students do not have financial literacy and that the Coalition wanted to help with resources, materials, teacher training, and whatever they can to make it work in Madison schools. The curriculum would be provided for free and is being used in Wisconsin already. He reiterated that a historical vote would take place tomorrow on Assembly Bill 94 as a one semester course and distributed a copy of the legislation (a copy is attached to the original of these minutes).
Discussion: Schedule for student summer workshops around the state.
William Wilcox, President of CBM Credit Education Foundation, Inc., distributed a brochure describing the Foundation and some of its projects and a copy of his statement in support of financial literacy as a requirement for graduation from high school (copies are attached to the original of these minutes).
Discussion: Cost of training teachers and time spent developing curriculum and for student materials. Offer of $100,000 on a one-time basis. Teachers can get graduate credits. Salaries are paid to teachers if the district requires them to take courses during the summer. FTE cost will be a wash. Course would replace something that is an elective. Cost would be materials. District offers elective personal finance courses now. Credits at the high schools would not change. Other district participation and number of teachers trained so far. Building on the model used in Appleton where they are piloting a combination program for middle and high schools.
Professor Bill Duddleston, Wisconsin Institute of Financial and Economic Education, has been working with this program since 2000. Edgewood College's subsidy is a tuition reduction and they are ready to participate and are committed to this program. They are drawing professors from other institutions. He has enjoyed the experience and urged the Board to come to some of the sessions.
Discussion: Granting credit, enrollment, doing something new with less and less funds, finding legislative solutions, need for more accurate costing information, unfunded mandates, giving students the tools to make a difference in the structure in the future, taking advantage of a generous offer.
It was moved by Donald Severson and seconded by Mary Ellen Johnson to ask that the administration and David Mancl, William Wilcox, and Bill Duddleston report back to the committee relative to costs of teacher training, curriculum (report back to the Performance and Achievement Committee), and provide information on the model being used in Appleton. It was further moved that the Partnerships Committee was open to forming a partnership for support.
Discussion: Confirmed that the motion implied an analysis of the curriculum by district staff. Superintendent indicated that the bill would probably pass in the legislature and that the district would welcome the partnership.
Motion unanimously carried.
Written registrations included a Madison student who agreed that a financial education program was important and more relevant than many of the current courses offered, as along as there is private funding.
5. Community Funding Sources
As chair of the Finance and Operations Committee, Ms. Carstensen was following up on a suggestion that the Partnerships Committee look at ways to seek out community partnerships to help with the budget deficit in terms of tapping resources, how much might be expected, and what the process would be for putting that in place. Mr. Allen noted that the suggestion was qualified in terms of having to know what the district's needs would be before anything is put in place. He noted that the budget has not been done but that there are opportunities to fund some things like sports and some of the arts but that there were no dollar amounts to give at this point. It was also pointed out that Ms. Robarts was not in attendance to give her aspect.
Discussion: Sports budget is about $2 million without fees. Fourth grade strings $240,000. Categorical aid will not be available for driver's education next year and enrollment is going down. Appropriateness of talking about individual programs until the Board makes decisions about priorities and how it defines academic and co-curricular activities that are required and extra-curricular activities. Determining full costs and options for funding, including fees. Issue of creating three tiers also pits one program against another. Inability to apply the same percentage to cutting programs across the board. Inability to partially fund some programs. Pitting everything against the district priorities.
Communicating the situation to the public and asking for their feedback. Circular thinking involved in getting information out to the public early on and not going to the community until the board makes decisions. People will assume that things will continue until they are cut. Need to develop a plan for viable outreach. Budget is expected on March 8 and is normally not out until May. Open to other ideas.
Don Severson asked that Barbara Schrank be allowed to make a comment. She asked the committee to consider a process, if no changes are made at the state level, to look at things in a model way and build a framework from that, rather than putting something specific down and having a discussion. If the committee wants to out into the community, she suggested doing something with a longer time frame. She could work with the committee to flush out ideas to continue the dialogue. The Superintendent pointed out that the Madison Community Foundation and the district's grant writers could not be undercut. He also noted that it would be very difficult to find long-term funding, particularly from corporate people who would want public recognition.
Board has three priorities which the budget has to support and directs the process through its priorities.
Mr. Allen stated that the committee would work with Barbara Schrank and return to the committee with more ideas.
6. Other Business
There was no other business.
7. Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 7:37 p.m. by the unanimous consent of those present.
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