MOUNTAIN INSTITUTE JTED

Governing Board of Education

Regular Meeting Minutes

April 6, 2011 

__________________________________________________________________________________________A A regular meeting of the Mountain Institute JTED Governing Board of Education was held on April 6, 2011 at the Mountain Institute JTED District Office, 3003 Centerpointe East Dr., Prescott, AZ and convened at 6:00 p.m. 

6:00 P.M. REGULAR SESSION

1.   CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Harlow called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm and noted that Mr. Moody would take minutes due to the absence of Ms. Leja. 

2.   ROLL CALL

Present were:   Board members Roger Harlow, Thomas Liuzzo, Casey Samsill, Tony Carroll and Michael Taylor.   Heidi Baker was absent due to illness.   A quorum was established.  Also present were:  Ray Polvani, MI JTED Superintendent; Jeramy Plumb, MI JTED Program Director; Sandy Somsen, MI JTED Career Education Coordinator; and Howard Moody Finance Director and ESA Consultant .  There were no guests from the community present. 

3.  ADOPTION OF THE April 6, 2011 AGENDA

Mr. Samsill moved to approve the April 6, 2011 agenda.  Mr. Liuzzo seconded and the motion carried 4-0. 

4.  PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

      The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Chairman Harlow. 

5.  GOVERNING BOARD MEETING MARCH 23, 2011 MINUTES APPROVAL

Mr. Liuzzo moved to approve the March 23, 2011 Governing Board Meeting minutes as presented.   Mr. Samsill seconded and the motion carried 5-0. 

6.   SUMMARY OF CURRENT EVENTS

      A.  Superintendent

-  Seligman District Board Status.  Dr. Polvani gave an update on the appointment of a board member for Seligman.  Superintendent Tim Carter had a meeting with a person from Seligman whose name is not available at this time.  She is very well known and has been a member of the Seligman Board. 

     B.  Governing Board Members

- ASBA Spring Legal Conference.  Mr. Harlow attended this conference in March.  He brought a copy of the materials and his notes from the meeting and they will be available in the District Office.  He stated that this is the type of conference we need to attend to stay informed.  Dr. Polvani offered to make copies for any board member who requests one. 

-ASBA delegate  meeting.  Mr. Harlow mentioned this issue.  Dr. Polvani stated this would be on the agenda for the next meeting 

 - School Law Fall Seminar.  Mr. Harlownoted that ASBA will have a three-day school law 101 conference in the fall. 

7.   PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

      There was no public participation.

8.   ACTION ITEMS:

      A.    Consent Agenda:

There were two items on the consent agenda:  Approval of Payroll Vouchers 539 totaling $9,768.78 and 540 totaling $9,768.78; and Approval of Expense Vouchers 8117 totaling $12,384.  Mr. Harlow asked if any board member wanted to have an item removed from the consent agenda.  Mr. Samsill asked why the vouchers board members signed this evening were not included.  Mr. Moody explained that the vouchers in the consent agenda were those signed at the prior meeting.  The ones signed this evening would be approved at the next board meeting after they have been processed by the County.  There were no further questions and no board member requested to remove an item from the consent agenda.   Mr. Taylor moved to approve the consent agenda.  Mr. Liuzzo seconded and the motion carried 5-0. 

       B.    Discussion/Possible Action Item:  Consider approval of ASBA new political agenda items.

Dr. Polvani stated that the ASBA is asking for new agenda items to be considered for their legal priorities.  Mr. Moody explained the process for adding political agenda items to the ASBA.  Dr. Polvani indicated that the JTEDs do not receive full funding for state equalization.  Mr. Taylor moved to add to the MI ASBA priorities “increase JTED funding to 100% including all grades”.  Mr. Liuzzo seconded and the motion carried 5-0.  Mr. Carroll asked if we needed to re-prioritize our agenda items.  Mr. Moody clarified how the prioritization process works.  After the delegates complete their process in June, the board will then need to submit their priorities at that time. 

Mr. Samsill suggested an agenda item to require the legislature to follow open meeting laws.  After considerable discussion of this concern, Mr. Samsill gave direction to Dr. Polvani to pursue this issue with lobbyists. 

Mr. Carroll asked how MI can get the ASBA to address clarification of JTED Board Chair succession.  MI currently has no Policy relating to the Vice Chair.  Dr. Polvani discussed options about how to address this issue.  Mr. Harlow expressed concern about the one year at a time election of the chair.  He suggested that it may be appropriate to ask ASBA to challenge and add to their legal agenda.  It may also be appropriate to add to our policy.  Mr. Moody clarified that the statute requires an annual board election of the chair.  Mr. Carroll explained that he was inquiring only about sending to ASBA not changing policy.  Mr. Taylor asked if other JTEDs have dealt with this issue.  Mr. Liuzzo requested that the staff bring information about this issue from other JTEDs to our retreat.  Mr. Harlow suggested that MI is very spread out geographically and that may suggest that our needs are different.  Mr. Taylor also requested that the staff obtain implementation information/concerns from other JTEDs. 

C.    Discussion Possible Action Item:  Finance Report -- Mr. Moody reviewed the monthly financial report.  We still have over $1 million in cash.  Mr. Moody offered to provide detailed budget summaries which are available if any board member wishes to review.  Mr. Moody suggested that we move on to the agenda item related to assessed property valuations.  

• Mr. Moody reviewed the details of the secondary assessed valuation that will be effective for the budget year 2011-2012 that is included in the board packet.  He stated that the decreased valuations put Mi more at risk for possible decreases in funding by the state.  Mr. Carroll asked about the level of funding for MI since inception.  Mr. Moody explained the funding formula that determined the base support level is funded by first, property taxes and second, by state equalization funds that come from the general fund.  There was considerable discussion about MI funding and the impact of property taxes.  Since the issue of the 2011-2012 budget arose, Mr. Moody suggested that it may be more appropriate to move on to the Sudden Growth item. 
• Sudden Growth—Mr. Moody started by describing the aggregation process for student count.  Our SAIS consultant felt that the aggregation was successful and she was nearly through reconciling to our records.  Mr. Moody explained in detail the worksheet on sudden growth that was included in the board packet.  Mr. Moody pointed out that the increase occurred mostly from increases in freshman which will likely go away next year.  The result is an increase in funding from the state.  There was considerable discussion about funding from the state.  Mr. Samsill was pleased that we had controlled the budget and expenditure process very well.  Mr. Carroll suggested that school finance 101 be added to the agenda for the board retreat.  Mr. Carroll inquired about the likelihood of receiving the sudden growth funding.  Mr. Moody felt quite confident that MI would receive it.  He has had some discussion with ADE about that issue and there have been no concerns expressed by them.  There was additional discussion about the assessed valuations for the future and the impact.  The board expressed concern about the funding level for the future.  Mr. Moody pointed out that we had invested substantial amounts in growth and sustainability grants over the past two years.  He stated that the need for this kind of investment may be reduced in the future. 
• State Budget update/JTED Legislation – Dr. Polvani asked Mr. Moody to assist him in reviewing the state budget update from Chuck Essigs.  Dr. Polvani reviewed the bullets of the handout included in the board packet.  Dr. Polvani shared potential impacts to MI JTED including the elimination of funding for all 9^th grade students as well as the changes to ASRS contributions, including the reductions to Base Support Level as they relate to ASRS.  The bill is currently at the governor’s office awaiting signature.  

Dr. Polvani reviewed the status of other JTED issues including HB 2237, that relates to Centralized vs. Satellite issues regarding the funding of centralized students on member districts.  Discussions are ongoing between the JTED’s, Legal Counsel, and ADE School Finance.  Currently we are holding these discussions waiting for approval of HB 2237.  Dr. Polvani shared potential next steps for continuing the discussion and moving forward to assure full funding of centralized programs.  This issue is currently on the back burner. Dr. Polvani explained the possible options for pursuing this issue in the future.  Mr. Liuzzo asked where distance learning students would fit --Central or Satellite?  It may lead to more opportunities for future growth in these areas.  Dr. Polvani shared that these areas are critical and have been part of recent staff planning.  We will review additional information about distance learning later.  Dr. Polvani described the potential impacts of the 9^th grade funding cuts as they impact the Agriculture programs which require 9^th grade, as well as the other programs.  We are working diligently to find solutions that will hopefully minimize the impact on our member districts.  There are many unintended consequences.  Mr. Plumb shared his thoughts on the future role of distance learning as it related to central or satellite funding.  Mr. Moody discussed the impact of legislation related to potential carry forward from FY 2011 to FY 2012.  If the bill before the legislature that would allow unlimited carry forward passes, this would significantly help us deal with our budget capacity and potential allocations to member districts.  Mr. Samsill stated that he is concerned that we maintain the role of Career Preparation courses.  The impact in his community has been large, and would like to see us address the need for these courses either with new ideas, new staff, counseling at the local level, or other means.  Dr. Polvani indicated that staff had been discussing options to continue to provide programs for 9^th grade students.  Mr. Moody added that the law only removed funding for 9^th grade students; it does not eliminate the potential for 9^th grade students to still participate in Career Preparation.  Mr. Moody pointed out that a caution is that the satellites must continue to maintain effort. 

Dr. Polvani said that some of the JTEDs met on Tuesday with the Governor’s staff and will continue until the bill is signed  

• Smart Board -Mr. Moody described the staff visit to CCS Presentation Systems.  A Smart Board has been ordered and hopefully will be available at our next meeting, Mr. Plumb will demonstrate the software that will allow us to enter the distance learning environment.  The cost is approximately $14,000 but that does not include professional development.  Mr. Plumb elaborated on the Bridgit software that will enable several districts to connect for a class.  Mr. Carroll asked how the phone and internet connections will work between the various locations.  Mr. Plumb explained that most sites would need a dedicated phone line for voice; however, data would be transmitted by internet on the new broadband microwave system being installed in Yavapai County.  
• District Vehicle – Mr. Moody described the potential lease of a district vehicle through Enterprise rental car.  The district has selected a Ford Escape at the rate of $965 a month that includes all services except fuel.  The contract can be cancelled at any time, and we have the option to change cars and funding levels.  Mr. Taylor expressed concern over the cost of the lease.  Mr. Carroll asked Mr. Moody what are the current monthly expenses related to travel expenses.  Mr.  Liuzzo would like the board to shop the “package” from Enterprise to other local dealerships.  He too is concerned about the cost.  Mr. Samsill stated that all of the initial costs related to maintenance and upkeep of the car is unnecessary in the short term, and that he feels the price is a large number.  Mr. Samsill recommends seeking a lease from another vendor.  Mr. Liuzzo believes it is reflective of their daily rate for car usage.  Mr. Carroll recommends staying with the current mileage reimbursement since he believes that it is adequate for wear and tear on private vehicles.  Dr. Polvani agrees to return to the board with additional data, including future use and current reimbursement levels.  Mr. Taylor would also like to see the district return a portion of the tax revenue generated by local businesses to local businesses.  Mr. Liuzzo agreed.  Mr. Carroll asked Dr. Polvani to review what the actual cost might be and bring them back to the board.  

D.   Discussion/Possible Action Item:  Clarify new staff recommendations and consider approval of Instructional Services Director position for 2011-12

Mr. Harlow indicated this item will be postponed until the next scheduled governing board meeting.  Dr. Polvani explained that the staff is recommending that this be rescheduled in light of recent changes at the legislative level. 

 E.    Discussion/Possible Action Item:  Consider approval of amendment to Mountain Institute District    Office lease agreement.

Mr. Moody described the action that is needed by the MI Governing Board.  MI needs to amend the current office lease to allow for the installation of the satellite dish and to hold the landlord harmless for any costs if MI were to ever decide to move to a new location.  The amendment has been reviewed by our counsel.  The landlord has agreed to sign the amendment to our lease and the GovNET lease agreement pending the approval of this amendment.  Mr. Taylor asked Mr. Moody to clarify the prior issue between the landlord and GovNET related to dish installation.  Mr. Moody stated that these issues have been resolved due to a hold harmless agreement between the landlord and GovNET.  Mr. Taylor asked Mr. Moody to verify that MI insurance coverage would be adequate to cover potential damages related to this project.  Mr. Samsill is concerned about mounting a dish that is not permanently secured to the roof.  Mr. Carroll was concerned with local code issues.  Mr. Taylor does not believe that local code will be an issue.  The HOA may not allow the mounting to occur on the roof extending above the roof line.  The dish may need to be located on a side wall.  Mr. Carroll moved to approve the amendment to the MI office Lease agreement.  Mr. Samsill seconded the motion.  The motion passed 5-0.

 F.     Discussion Item/Possible Action Item:  Consider approval of Program Evaluation process.

Dr. Polvani introduced this agenda item.  When we consider program evaluation, most of our instructors are satellite employees and do not directly report to us.  Mr. Plumb began by pointing out that the evaluation instrument shown on the screen is in the board packet.  He stated that we need to be in the classroom more, determine that the equipment being used is of sufficient quality, and whether programs are following MI policies.  We reached out to other JTED partners and obtained their instruments, modified them and then reviewed with the MAC committee.  Program by program evaluation will occur at least one time a year.   There is a need for our staff to evaluate satellite programs but we need buy-in from the satellite.  We would go through each item in the instrument.    Both the site and MI would evaluate and assign a value for each category.  This information would be shared with the site and we would jointly determine what is needed to improve the sites.   Rubric values are assigned and placed in categories.  We want to make sure all programs are managed well and serving the kids.  This would be done for each category. 

There are other tools for assessing program quality.  Right now we use two assessments -- end of year assessment and state performance from CTE Division and all of the measures that are included in the annual report.  The latter is at a more summary level.  The new instrument is much more detailed and includes all important criteria.  We will eventually review all three reports and instruments with site administration and CTE instructors.  He then discussed ADE PAR standard 20.  The score here may trigger an audit from ADE CTE.  We have correlated our instrument with ADE standards in all parts of the tool.   

Mr. Samsill felt the instrument seems to be more facility and curriculum focused and does not include teacher evaluation which is very important.  He asked how can there be a better evaluation of the teacher?  Mr. Plumb agreed that the teacher is the most important thing, but we are cautious that we do not evaluate individual teachers.  However, many of the questions in the instrument are addressing indicators that reflect teacher performance.  The level of teacher performance should be evident when the instrument is completed.  Mr. Carroll was very pleased with the combination of both site and MI review since MI would be on site only a few times for a short period.  Mr. Harlow stated based on his experience that it is important to have evaluators that have knowledge of the field.  Mr. Plumb stated that he and Dr. Polvani probably do not have in depth understanding of the technical skills in all areas.  We may include CAC members or the local advisory board to help bring needed experience.  Mr. Liuzzo described the way the state board includes several different disciplines.  Mr. Carroll stated in his organization he will bring in the department supervisor who has significant expertise.  Mr. Samsill asked if the students should also be part of the evaluation.  Mr. Plumb responded that the state PAR standards require some input from students.  The system should be built so that the local level does that more than MI.  Mr. Carroll requested that the start and end time be added to the tool.  Generally the evaluations take a full day.  Mr. Harlow stated if there were several courses included in a program should there be more emphasis on the courses?  Mr. Plumb stated that the focus is intentionally directed at programs to help change the culture but courses are reviewed.  By doing the evaluation you indirectly evaluate the courses.  Yavapai College has their own program separate from the ADE requirements for JTEDs.  Mr. Carroll pointed out that the instrument does provide more detail.  We will do a pilot this fall and work with the MAC committee to be ready for comprehensive evaluation the following year.  Mr. Samsill stated that it was great that we are beginning this process but he suggested that it not be done too late in the year because the teacher may not be planning to return the following year.  Mr. Taylor moved to adopt the MI JTED Program Review Instrument and Rubric to include the start and end time of the visit, seconded by Mr. Liuzzo and approved 5-0.

G.   Discussion/Possible Action Item.  Consider approval of request for County Attorney opinion on Governing Board succession process.  Dr. Polvani recounted the history of this issue and the direction of the Board to consider requesting an opinion.  The question to be addressed was what steps should be taken if the Seligman board member wants to be elected but the board does not approve.  Mr. Carroll asked if that included any district that was in the rotation and was not elected.  Dr. Polvani responded that the question proposed included that question.  Mr. Carroll suggested that “Seligman” should be replaced with “eligible person”.  Mr. Liuzzo expressed Mr. Carter’s concern about what will happen in December if a board member from Seligman is appointed.  Mr. Carroll stated that the latter question would better answer the question at hand.  Mr. Harlow cited the EVIT rotation.  Mr. Carroll restated that answering the one question would answer both.  Mr. Samsill stated that we had no idea this was an issue.  He stated that we need to deal with this and possibly consider it at the retreat.  We should make the decision, not have an outside agency make it.  Dr. Polvani agreed conceptually but the law does require rotation.  But there does need to be clarification.  The statute is a concern and is the issue.  Staff will obtain input on how the other JTEDs handle these situations.  Mr. Moody stated that the issue is that there are conflicting statutes – one requires rotation of the chair and one requires that the board annually elect a chair.  Dr. Polvani asked for the board to state its desires about the legal opinion.  It was concluded that the board would simplify by policy once we have the opinion from the County Attorney.  Mr. Carroll asked if Seligman would have the opportunity if they came in before the end of the year.  Board members discussed several other potential scenarios but agreed that the question being posed should address all of these issues.  Motion made by Mr. Samsill that the Governing Board approve the submittal of a request to the Yavapai County Attorney regarding clarification of Mountain Institute JTED Governing Board procedures for succession of the Chairperson’s position by an eligible candidate.  Mr. Taylor seconded and the motion carried 5-0.

 9.  Discussion Items

A.  Discussion Item:  Curriculum/Instruction /Program Status

-Pre-enrollment update:  Ms. Somsen began with the enrollment update.  We have received 231 interest cards with 110 packets returned.  A handout was provided to the Board broken down by program.  Phone solicitation effort is still underway with parent meetings complete.  We are still shooting for 200 packets.  Mr. Samsill asked about duplicated count.   Sandy explained that some students may have checked more than one interest card.  Data does not include Seligman, Ash Fork, Bagdad or Yavapai County High School.  There are some packets from them for the Friday programs.  Mr. Samsill inquired about Ag.  Ms. Somsen responded that Prescott has three students traveling to Chino Valley.  Mr. Carroll stated that Bagdad does not have central programs because the board does not want students to travel.  He then inquired if Bagdad could have the pre-engineering program as a central program?  Mr. Plumb stated that the satellite usually determines what programs will be added.  Mr. Harlow described the program at YC included the CNC machines that cost $250k.  Ms. Somsen said that Ed Professions could be an option.  Mr. Carroll felt that the mine may want to support the pre-engineering program.  Several options for accomplishing this were discussed.  Mr. Carroll believes that interest in Bagdad would be very substantial.

- Open Houses – Mr. Plumb stated that Staff is recommending that we defer all open houses until the fall of next year.  There is still some work to be completed at the sites.  MAC has recommended that the MI open house be coordinated with the regular district open houses probably by coordinating with their fall open houses.  Mr. Plumb reported that he just received a text message that Ms. Jennifer Leja one of our JTED students was selected as the Prescott Leadership’s young woman of the year.  Board members applauded and expressed their pleasure on behalf of Ms. Leja.  Mr. Bill Otwell was selected as the man of the year.  Mr. Samsill recommended that the Board make road trips to attend these open houses.

B. and C.  Dr. Polvani suggested that given the late hour that the two information items remaining on the agenda be postponed until the following meeting.  There were no objections from the board members present. 

10. ANNOUNCEMENTS

     A.  Next scheduled board meetings:

                April 20, 2011                     6:00 p.m.             Regular Meeting              MI District Office

                May 4, 2011                        6:00 p.m.             Regular Meeting              MI District Office

 11. ADJOURNMENT

Mr. Liuzzo moved to adjourn the meeting.   Mr. Carroll seconded and the motion carried 5-0.  The meeting was adjourned at 9:16 p.m.

 Respectfully submitted,

 Howard Moody

Secretary pro tem