O’Rourke Middle School Building Council Retreat Minutes
Monday, February 25, 2008
2:45PM
 Library Classroom

Attendance:  Don Germain, Nancy Pearse, Judy Brinkman, Robbie Paine, Sharon Salmon, Karen Shipston, Robin Gawrys, Janet Bianchi, Penny McDonnell, Kate Kilmer, Lori Moore, Pat Munsey

1. Review of Minutes:  The minutes from the January 28^th, 2008 meeting were reviewed and accepted as written.
2. Standing Committee Reports:
   1. Class Night:  The committee continues to meet regularly to work out the details of the Class Night Program and Dance.  The theme, Music of the Decades, has been selected and a committee of students, staff members and parents will meet to pick music from four decades to highlight the program.  One student was selected from each homeroom to sit on this committee.  Committee representatives met with the administrative team to work out the details of melding the Awards Ceremony and Class Night Events.  Significant changes were made to the program to accommodate both events into a timely and fun evening for our students.  Letters have been sent to 8^th grade parents to notify them of the change in programming and reinforce dress and conduct guidelines.
   2. Transition Committee:  A historical document of the transition events and initiatives undertaken at O’Rourke and between the District schools is being created to memorialize our current work and help to lay the groundwork for future programs.  Recently, the collective efforts of the middle school and high school guidance departments have enabled us to complete a very productive Crossing Over Route 50 8^th grade orientation event.  Dialog at the District level regarding a K-12 approach to transition continues to take place. 
   3. Committee for Academic and Personal Excellence:  A prioritized list of undertakings has been completed by the staff for review by the committee members at their next meeting.  The broad scope of work outlined at the last meeting needs to be refined further to be targeted in one or two areas of focus.  Data analysis on student performance continues to help target strategies for improved achievement in the cognitive and affective domains.  Data is also being looked at to help make informed decisions regarding program and practice.  Currently, information on the use of progress comments is being gathered and analyzed to help cull the comment list.  The suggestion by the committee to reward progress for students who show sustained growth in their overall academic performance has translated into our first Honors Breakfast.  Seventeen students will be rewarded with a breakfast on Friday, February 29 for raising their overall average 3.5 points or better.
   4. Spirit Committee:  Mix ‘n Match Day will be held this Friday as a part of our efforts to sustain high levels of school spirit.  Students will be reminded prior to the event about proper conduct and dress expectations for the day.
3. Communication Council:  Don Germain, Penny McDonnell and Kate Kilmer represented the building at the recent Communication Council meeting.  The new look Council focuses their efforts on sharing ideas and brainstorming solutions to common problems.  At the most recent meeting, the Council considered information on the following matters:  Pyramid of Interventions, Culture, Team, Data undertakings, Staff Development, building initiatives, RTI, and PAT Team structures to name a few.
4. Cabinet:  The Building Cabinet recently addressed the reorganization of State math assessment schedules, WAVE scheduling, and discussed the development of a checklist of impediments to learning and instructional strategies to support the further infusion of prevention measures into the classroom.
5. Safe Routes to School Grant:  The committee to develop and submit the Safe Routes to School Grant will meet on March 5 to begin to finalize their proposal.  The grant proposal will have to be pared down from its original scope due to some variables beyond the control of the committee.  The final aspects of the proposal are still under consideration.
6. PAT Retreat:  The members of the PAT team will meet on Wednesday, February 27 to reevaluate their work at the mid term of the school year.  Some of the items to be reviewed are:  meeting times, committee membership, protocols for meetings and shared decision making, screening and testing procedures, data gathering, analysis, and documentation.  Kristin Trapini, Audrey Wood and Nancy Pearse are representing O’Rourke on the Pyramid of Intervention District  wide committee.
7. Building Goals:  An overview of our work toward completing our building goals was completed.  The committees overseeing the work are making some steady progress, with inherent corrections taking place to insure we stay the course.  Scheduling recommendations have been made to the Superintendent for accelerated science and await disposition.  Transition initiatives are continuing as outlined in the Standing Committee report.  Efforts are consistently being made to improve communication across all constituent groups.  Adjustments are being made in terms of our exploration and implementation of some RTI and Pyramid of Intervention strategies.  Final evaluation of goals and the development of new goals will take place at the summer Council retreat. 
8. SMART Goals:  Indicators are demonstrating that we are making steady progress toward achieving our targeted SMART goals.  A final evaluation will be completed later on in the spring for the current goals scheduled to come to completion in June. The process for developing future SMART Goals has commenced through dialog with the Council, Cabinet and District Office.
9. Open Agenda:

1. AM Traffic Flow:  We continue to evaluate the AM traffic flow, specifically between the hours of 7:15-7:45 AM.  More measures are being considered and researched to potentially improve drop off procedures.  The recent addition of signs and traffic flow cones has helped to alleviate many of the concerns.
2. Budget:  Council members were encouraged to take an active part in the upcoming budget process.  The Superintendent’s proposals will be submitted to the BOE this week, with a public forum scheduled for Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 7:30 PM in the High School Library.
3. Lunch Service:  The length of the lunch lines was discussed.  Although significantly improved since the change over to the new machines, there are still delays that need to be monitored.
4. Flexible Scheduling:  The complex nature of 6th grade scheduling in the flexible block often makes it difficult to track down students as they shift from classroom to classroom in the daily rotation.  The 6^th grade team will look for potential ways to improve this situation.