Call to Order
Introduction – Alison, Kristin, Stephanie, Lynne, Chris and Christina attended.
Officers/committee reports –
– Last month’s meeting went well and we had a few people stay after for a social hour.
– Next month’s meeting will be at the Gibbs, at 7pm on February 12th, and there will be a social after.
Workshops –
a. MRC – 5:30 in the High School on Janurary 22nd, the Mass Rehab Commission is coming into the high school to talk with students about their programs. They are bringing vendors who can explain future job options/internship opportunities to students, parents. DDS, DMH are participating.
b. Nicole is looking up new and better presentations to hold, still haven’t heard back
d. Beyond Booksmart? Matt hasn’t returned so we aren’t sure where we stand on this
e. Gibbs Transition Night, Ottoson Transition Night?
f. January 28th, 8th grade transition night at the high school, will happen in the lower auditorium at the high school.
g. We are looking into holding another mindfulness workshop at the end of the school year with Carla Leone.
h. Alison posted summer camp opportunities on the list serve to view.
APS Staff Reports –
– School Committee is this Thursday night. Len is here to explain how the tax override will work. The school committee is looking into a multi-year five year plan to determine how much we need each year to fund the budget. The override vote is on June 8th this year. Len wants to talk more about this at our February meeting.
– The location of the Preschool during the high school renovations is uncertain. The preschool will be at the high school next year. The Parmenter School (on Academy Street) is likely to be the future location of the preschool.
– There will be two different ballot questions, one on an override (permanent) tax increase, and one on a debt exclusion (will end when the high school is paid off in 30 years).
– The plans for the new school are being finalized. They are building it to a spec of 1750 occupants (current capacity is at 1200). Currently there are many places in the high school which can’t be used (dead space), and while the new building will be around the same size, its space will be much more functional. There will be some room for growth, but since the kindergarten classes continue to grow larger, we may reach a point where administration spaces are taken and used for classrooms.
– Construction will happen in two phases, each one taking two years. The first will be complete in 2022 and the second phase will be finished in 2024. They are still determining just how much parking space will be added, and how the land will be re-graded to prevent flooding.
Public Participation –
Announcements –
Adjourn
Arlington SEPAC 