Meeting of January 30, 2006 at St. Paul's Episcopal Church

Minutes

Karen Ferguson, the president of the Glen Cove Teachers Association was our guest speaker. The discussions were about the two-year austerity budget and successfully voting for this year’s budget.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Unfunded:

• Before NCLB, the testing was in third and eighth grade. Now, the exams are from third grade to eighth grade.
• There are three days of each examination (ELA, math, science and social studies). The students do not have classrooms teachers for speech, resource rooms, libraries, etc.
• The teachers accomplish three days of examination scoring. So, each classroom has a substitute teacher.
• If a school district fails the examinations, the school district does not get funds from the government.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Least restricted environment. There are now no self-contained student classes. They are in regular classrooms with a special education teacher.

Successfully Voting for the Community School Budget:

• Public relations committee
• Last year, there were 3000 people who voted. Glen Cove has 12,000 voters. We need to communicate with the other 9000 voters.
• Mail out the voters and vote “YES” for the school budget.
• Advertise with the local newspapers.
• Presentation meetings for the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, etc.

Submitted by Bob Desiano