Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Board Briefs from March 28, 2017 Special Board Business Meeting

This information includes highlights of information received by the Ladue Schools Board of Education at the March 28, 2017, Special Board Business Meeting.  This is an unofficial record.  Official minutes of each Board meeting are posted on the district website and are available for viewing at the Administrative Center after the Board approves them, typically two weeks after the meeting.

INFORMATION ITEM

Summer 2017 Capital Projects.  Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Dr. Jason Buckner presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendations for awarding facility improvement projects slated to be completed in the summer of 2017.  Bids were sought for carpet replacement in various locations of six district facilities, paving at Ladue Middle School, fencing for the Ladue West Campus athletic fields, and pool equipment at the high school.  

High School Building Project Report #12.  Project Director for S.M. Wilson Kort Cole presented, and the Board approved, contractor pay applications for the month of February.  Mr. Cole also provided construction progress report #12 which includes updates on design and engineering; permitting; finance and budget; bidding and procurement; scheduling; and current construction activity.  Photos of various components of the project are included in the linked document.  

UPCOMING MEETINGS

The next Board of Education meeting will be a Business Meeting on April 11, 2017, at 7 p.m. at the Administrative Center, 9703 Conway Road.  Tentative agenda items include the following.  

Announcement of Election Results
ACTION
  • City of Ladue/District Resource Officer Agreement
  • Board Policy Changes
  • Board Reorganization/Oaths of Office/Election of Officers
INFORMATION
  • Support Staff Employee Council Report


Thursday, March 16, 2017

Board Briefs from March 13, 2017 Business Meeting

This information includes highlights of information received by the Ladue Schools Board of Education at the March 13, 2016 Business Meeting.  This is an unofficial record.  Official minutes of each Board meeting are posted on the district website and are available for viewing at the Administrative Center after the Board approves them, typically two weeks after the meeting.


Board President's Remarks
  • Board President Sheri Glantz thanked Board Vice President Andy Bresler for presiding over the Feb. 27, 2017, meeting in her absence.
Superintendent Remarks
  • Superintendent Dr. Donna Jahnke updated the Board on the development of the new district website due to be launched this spring.  The two most significant changes to the website are that it is responsive — meaning that it can be easily viewed on multiple types of devices, and it is a content management system -- meaning that it can be easily edited by multiple users.  Announcements about the official launch of the site will be shared with district stakeholders.
ACTION ITEM

Auditor Contract. Assistant Superintendent for Business & Finance Dr. Jason Buckner presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendation to continue to retain the services of Daniel Jones & Associates to do the district’s required annual audit.  Daniel Jones & Associates has provided the auditing services for the district since the 2006-07 school year and is being awarded a five-year contract.  The proposed cost for the audit is not to exceed $14,000 per annual audit.   

Groundskeeping Services. Dr. Buckner presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendation to award a one-year contract to the lowest qualified bidder, Willow Landscaping LLC, for providing grounds services for district properties.  This not only represents a cost savings to the district over doing this work internally, but has the added benefit of the majority of the work being performed during non-school hours.  

High School Building Project Approvals. Dr. Buckner presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendation for awarding two bids related to the high school renovation project. The bid process was coordinated by S.M. Wilson, the district’s construction management firm.

  • Roofing: Taylor Roofing for $960,313
  • Acoustical Ceilings: Friend Acoustical Co, Inc. for  $716,331.14

Student Transfer Program. With Riverview Gardens School District having regained accreditation, the Board determined that the eleven students who currently attend Ladue School District schools as a result of transferring from Riverview Gardens, and are not graduating in the 2016-17 school year, will be allowed to stay through their next natural transition year (fifth grade, eighth grade or twelfth grade.) Two students who have transferred from Riverview Gardens will be graduating from Ladue Horton Watkins High School in 2017. Riverview Gardens will be compensating receiving school districts for students who transfer to other districts after the 2016-17 school year at a rate of $7,000 per student.

INFORMATION ITEMS

Capital Projects Plan. Facilities Director Mike Noonan presented the 2017 Facilities Report, which included information regarding capital (building) work to be completed during the summer of 2017, an outline of capital needs anticipated for the 2017-18 school year, an update on projects being completed as a result of the Proposition R bond referendum, an overview of plans for reorganizing staffing of the Facilities Department, and a review of the progress being made to update the district’s Facilities Master Plan.  Details can be found by clicking on the header to this paragraph.  

Policy Review. Administrators presented information about 15 policy change recommendations which will come before the Board for approval at the April 11, 2017 meeting. The majority of these changes are being made at the recommendation of the Missouri School Board Association (MSBA) in order to keep district policies in compliance with state and federal law, and to accurately reflect current district practices in policy.  

Board Advisory Committee Reappointments. Mrs. Glantz announced that the following patrons are recommended for reappointment to their second terms to district Board Advisory Committees:

  • Ann Noble, Facilities Board Advisory Committee
  • James Faron, Facilities Board Advisory Committee
  • Troy McLendon, Finance Board Advisory Committee
  • Mark Murdaugh, Finance Board Advisory Committee
  • Adil Rahman, Technology Board Advisory Committee
  • Keith Yeldham, Technology Board Advisory Committee
  • Frank Trau, Technology Board Advisory Committee

Patrons to be newly appointed to these committees for their first term will be approved by the Board later in the year.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

The next Board of Education meeting will be a Special Business Meeting on March 28, 2017.  The following meeting will be a Business Meeting at 7 p.m. on April 11, 2017.  Both meetings will be held at the Administrative Center, 9703 Conway Road. Tentative agenda items include the following.  

Tentative Agenda Items for Special Business Meeting, March 28, 2017:

ACTION
  • Capital Projects Plan
  • High School Building Project
    • Payment Applications/Work Package/Change Orders
Tentative Agenda Items for Business Meeting April 11, 2017:

Announcement of Election Results

ACTION
  • City of Ladue/District Resource Officer Agreement
  • Board Policy Changes
  • Board Reorganization/Oaths of Office/Election of Officers
INFORMATION

  • Support Staff Employee Council Report

Friday, March 3, 2017

Board Briefs from Feb. 27, 2017 Business Meeting

This information includes highlights of information received by the Ladue Schools Board of Education at the Feb. 27, 2017 Business Meeting.  This is an unofficial record.  Official minutes of each Board meeting are posted on the district website and are available for viewing at the Administrative Center after the Board approves them, typically two weeks after the meeting.



February Excellence in Education Award
Rhonda West, Speech and Pathology Teacher
Special School District at Old Bonhomme Elementary


Board Vice President's Remarks (President Sheri Glantz was not in attendance)
  • Board Vice President Andy Bresler commented on how impressed he was with the professional development which took place on Feb. 17, 2017, with the entire Ladue Schools staff.  The focus of the training was on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and included a presentation by Dr. Terry Jones of UMSL regarding the history of racism in Missouri and St. Louis, and a discussion about implicit bias by representatives of Educational Equity Consultants.  Mr. Bresler said that despite previous training he has participated in on DEI issues, he was very impacted by the presentations and discussions and noted similar reactions from the staff in attendance.   
Superintendent Remarks
  • Superintendent Dr. Donna Jahnke provided the Board with an update on the projects being done as a result of the approval of Proposition R beyond the high school renovation.  While the majority of the $85.1 million in bonds approved will be used for renovation of the high school, other projects were included and are either underway or complete, including: modification of the entryways at Reed Elementary School and Old Bonhomme Elementary School, exterior lighting improvements at Spoede Elementary School, installation of an artificial turf field at the Ladue West Campus, technology upgrades K-8 (in addition to those being incorporated into the high school during renovation), and security and surveillance features across the district.
ACTION ITEM


Student Transportation Contract. Assistant Superintendent for Business & Finance Dr. Jason Buckner presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendation for extending the contracts with Missouri Central School Bus (for two years) and Transpar (for three years).  These are the district’s current providers for bus transportation services, with Missouri Central School Bus providing employee services and Transpar providing management and logistical support.  


Substitute Services Vendor. Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Ken Rossics presented, and the Board approved, the administration’s recommendation to contract with Kelly Educational Services to support the district’s need for substitute teachers.  While it is always preferred that teachers be in their classrooms to support students, it is sometimes necessary for them to be out and for a qualified substitute to be present.  After considering a multitude of factors and options, the district recommended partnering with Kelly Education Services due to their willingness to utilize the existing Ladue Schools substitute pool, and their demonstrated ability to significantly increase substitute fill rates for other districts in the area.  


High School Building Project. Project Director for S.M. Wilson Kort Cole presented, and the Board approved, contractor pay applications for the month of January.  Mr. Cole also provided construction progress report #11 which includes updates on design and engineering; permitting; finance and budget; bidding and procurement; scheduling; and current construction activity.  Photos of various components of the project are included in the linked document.  


The Board also approved the administration’s recommendation for awarding two bids related to the high school renovation project. The bid process was coordinated by S.M. Wilson, the district’s construction management firm.


  • Framing & Drywall - Music Wing (Work Package 1a):  T.J. Wies Contracting, Inc. for $420,475
  • Brick and Masonry (Work Package 3): Heitcamp Masonry, Inc. for  $2,248,256


INFORMATION ITEMS


Auditor Contract. Dr. Buckner presented the administration’s recommendation to continue to retain the services of Daniel Jones & Associates to do the district’s auditing.  Daniel Jones & Associates has provided the majority of auditing services for the district since the 2006-07 school year and is recommended to be awarded an additional five-year contract.  The Board will vote on the administration’s recommendation at the March 13, 2017 Board Business Meeting.  


Facilities Update: Groundskeeping Services. Dr. Buckner updated the Board on the progress of the administration’s Request for Proposals to provide the district’s grounds services.  Five companies have responded to the Request for Proposals and a recommendation for a specific company will be made at the March 13, 2017 Board Business Meeting.  Moving these services to a contractor represents a cost savings to the district.  However, although some of the services being performed have formerly been provided by district employees, no displacement of district employees will occur as a result of contracting groundskeeping services due to staff attrition.  

Curriculum & Instruction Updates. Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction Dr. Jennifer Allen and Gifted Coordinator Brooke Bilby presented information regarding elementary report cards, curriculum technology pilots, the curriculum development cycle and gifted programming for underrepresented populations.  Details can be found by clicking on the header of this paragraph.  


High School Program Report. Ladue Horton Watkins High School Principal Brad Griffith, Assistant Principal Liz Grana, and Technology Specialist Adam Stirrat provided extensive information regarding a number of current initiatives at the high school.  Details can be found by clicking on the header to this paragraph.  Topics addressed include:  working in a building under construction, grade distribution, behavior referrals, advanced course and Advanced Placement enrollment, structured Seminar period, interventions and supports, and the Limitless Learning (one-to-one) initiative.  


UPCOMING MEETINGS


The next Board of Education meeting will be a Business Meeting on Monday, March 13, 2017, at the Administrative Center, 9703 Conway Road.  The following meeting will be a Special Board Business Meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28, 2017.  Tentative agenda items include the following.  


Tentative Agenda Items for Business Meeting March 13, 2017:


ACTION
  • Auditor Contract
  • Facilities Services
  • Board Policy Changes
  • High School Building Project
    • Project Report #12
    • Payment Applications/Work Package/Change Orders
INFORMATION
  • Capital Projects Plan
  • Strategic Plan
Tentative Agenda Items for Special Board Business Meeting March 28, 2017:
ACTION

  • High School Building Project
    • Payment Applications/Work Package/Change Orders