See information under Old Business about the Arthritis Walk!

Minutes – Democratic Town Committee – May 4, 2003

Called to order 7:09 PM.
MEMBERS ATTENDING: Steve Blesofsky, Debby Blumer, Pat Dunne, Jerry Desilets, Bill Haberman, Donna Howland, Ruth Litter, Barbara Magovsky, Stephanie Mercandetti, Betty Muto, Lyn Safian, Norma Shulman.
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS ATTENDING: Kathie McCarthy, Rosalie Cotton, Bob Edwards, Mat Helman, Terri Micciche, Rochelle Sivan, Karen Spilka, Nancy Coville Wallace.
OTHERS SIGNED IN: Pam Richardson, Carlos Cunningham, H. Gendreau, John Kahn, Walter Foster, Albert Cullen.

MINUTES (Norma Shulman): Motion to accept the April minutes – approved. Motion to accept March meeting minutes – approved (quorum not present in April).

TREASURER’S REPORT May report approved. April reported submitted by Bill Haberman, information reported by Norma Shulman in April – approved (quorum not present in April).
Cash on hand 4/6/03    $658.12
Deposits (dues)    $15.00
Interest    $0.00
Subtotal     $673.12
Expenses (meeting room)    $0.00
Cash on hand 5/4/03    $673.12
3 still owe dues for last year. 10 owe dues for this year. There are 18 paid associate members.

Announcements:
… MW Alliance is meeting now at the Framingham Library and looking for new location for future meetings. State Committee is bringing the McGovern-Dukakis hearing to Framingham on June 14 at noon for discussion of Convention reform. Submit comments in writing or by email.
… Bob Edwards reminded us that he is supporting a bill to promote bicycle helmet safety.
… Stephanie Mercandetti just completed the Walk for Hunger before coming to the meeting! Norma is going to be doing the one-mile Against the Tide swim for the Breast Cancer Coalition in June. Both are opportunities to support the respective organizations.

Old Business:
Mat applied to the State Committee for a grass roots grant to support the establishment of the website submitted. The grants will be announced at the convention.

Arthritis Walk – Sunday, May 18 is the Metrowest Arthritis Walk. They offer a 3.1 mile or 1 mile walk around Tercentennial Park. Registration begins at 10:30, walk begins at noon. Barbara Magovsky has a team to walk 1 mile. Needs one more for the team. We can use a few more people to represent the DTC. Contact Barbara ([email protected] or 872-2103) to join a team or for more information. Karen Spilka and Debby Blumer are honorary co-chairs of the event. Arthritis Foundation 617-244-1800 and www.arthritis.com. Even if you don’t walk, you can make a pledge.

 

This is the last meeting of the season. The date/place of the September meeting to be announced. The Convention is June 7 in Lowell. Alternates and delegates should be getting a mailing.

Program:

DISCLAIMER: These notes of the program are snippets of what was said. The numbers and other facts are as accurate as I could get while trying to capture as many of the points as possible. This is not intended as a transcript – only as an attempt to share the general discussion for those who missed it.

Speakers: Robert Kaufman, Executive Director, Framingham Community Charter School, and Pam Richardson, Framingham School Committee, Co-Chair of the Charter School Funding Subcommittee of the Alliance for Educational Equity.

Introduction: This program is intended as an educational forum – Debby Blumer will explain her moratorium bill. Then the primary speakers will present their views. Then there will be time for questions.

Representative Debby Blumer: 1992-93 when ed reform was being discussed, the legislature created up to 27(?) charter school as part of this reform to create innovation in education. There was concern with some of the central cities and rural areas because these areas could not afford the opportunities for kids that wealthier communities provided. The legislature committed to provide significant new money for this. Over time, the number of schools was limited to 135(?). Horace Mann charter schools operate within the school budgets and control. Boston has some pilot schools as well as charters. Commonwealth charter schools are funded differently. They are funded by adding up all the direct and indirect charges that the local schools have in order to calculate the per pupil spending, to determine how much the charter schools are then given per pupil. The state gives incentives for charter schools to set up, on a decreasing scale, to encourage charter schools to open. Last summer the Governor vetoed the incentive funding for charter schools. So 5 weeks before school opened, Framingham had to have layoffs and other cuts to make up the $950,000 loss. Now there will be a double loss of this nature, in addition to all the other local aid cuts to towns and cities. There basically is a shift of money from the Framingham district schools to the Framingham Community Charter School (FCCS). There are two bills, the O’Brien amendment would freeze new Charter schools for 3 years. The Blumer amendment would freeze Charter enrollments, and will save about $80 million for the districts schools over 3 years. The importance of doing this, is that none of the current budgets cover current programs. There are cuts in transportation, early childhood, and other education moneys. These are obligations will not be honored. The Charter school money is not being reduced. The financial issues are driving the wedges. This formula is patentedly unfair. The moratorium will allow us time to fix this intelligently.

Pam Richardson was introduced, and distributed Dr. Smith’s article on why we need to have a moratorium. Pam is reviewing the dollars. Doesn’t the money follow the child? Town Administration for over $1 million is included in the calculation of per pupil costs. Why is the Town Administration in the calculation? It isn’t direct education services and can’t be reduced because 200 children go to charter school. Building maintenance is included, but isn’t reduced when 200 students go to the charter school. Retired teachers insurance is included. These are all ways to inflate the per pupil tuition for the charter school. Out of district education collaboratives and transportation are included – but no charters in Framingham have obligations to transport student out of area. HS renovation money is included, too. For every 4 children that go to the charter school, we lose the money for one teacher. For $1.8 million lost next year, we lose an elementary school. But with this formula, there is not innovation shared, there is just a divide created. Board of Ed Chair Peyser told her the formula was set up this way to protect the charter school funds, and it has done that. The charter is getting an increase for next year at the same time the district schools are getting less.

Robert Kaufman was introduced, and told us how every day before lunch a student reads a quote to the whole school, and shared this quote, “It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.“ 1996, after years of parents being concerned about middle schools, there was a task force formed. Those findings became the basis of the FCCS. Michael Delman (now Principal) was told by the state that Framingham parents were concerned about middle schools, so they checked it out. They came to Dr. Smith, Phil Dinsky, and the Teachers Union, and then presented a plan for a Horace Mann charter school. The School Committee voted no, so they went with a Commonwealth charter school. The moratorium is supposed to be to save money. On the issue that the charters are taking money away from the public schools – a charter school doesn’t cost the state anything – zero. It is just part of the same pie. The town isn’t losing anything; the School Committee is. It can’t be that they are siphoning money from the public schools, because the charters are public schools. Charter schools are cost effective – they don’t have facilities money. They provide choice. They bring change. He feels that parents are interested in the charter, looked over what the charter can offer their kids, then the parents went to Walsh to hear their questions answered. This is a good impact of the charter school, that the parents are comparing and asking questions.
A moratorium doesn’t cost the state anything – it would just be a decrease in accountability. The charter schools are closely monitored by politicians, media, etc. A moratorium would eliminate competition for the district schools.
The money goes to FCCS – it doesn’t leave Framingham. The charter last year cost 1.2% of the Framingham school budget. They will never have more than 3+% of the school budget. The district doesn’t save all the cost when a kid leaves, but they do save something. He agrees that it was unfair that the money was cut just before the school year. Governor Romney is now putting it back, because they are giving us 3 years to adjust to the numbers shift. He believes the reimbursement incentive is really for the towns, not for the schools. About the formula – the state gives the charter $9000 and the state gives the district schools $1000. The state doesn’t make the town hand over its budget- it doesn’t make the town hand over the money, the state transfers it for us. Of course the state has to include the real costs of schools, which includes retirement cost and other costs the charter schools have to consider. The charters get cut based on what the district schools spend. District schools and the unions need to learn they have to be more flexible. The charter’s teachers work longer hours, etc. They have 23% minority students, and 21 % have IEPs. Their special ed population is higher than the district. Minority % is higher than a few of the district schools. Think about who you are defending – defend your kids.

Karen Spilka had some comments to share. This is a very emotional issue and we can see how the hard feelings are developing in Framingham. She is looking for what she can do at the State House to help Framingham both in money and to help with the problem that is developing. She would prefer to see money go to the district schools and hold them more accountable. She told Peyser that charters should be funded separately, not from chapter 70 money, which sets up an adversarial situation. Pushing for the reimbursement money is something that can be done to help. It is really sad to see parent vs. parent, town vs. school, etc. The reimbursement money is a priority and they need to change the funding mechanism. And we should look at the entire chapter 70 funding for Framingham.

Pat Dunne mentioned that there were 2 middle school task forces. It took us 10 years to build back from folding into one middle school, now we are back into the same boat. We don’t know who is on the board of the FCCS. TM would have a fit over two administrators for 100 kids at FCCS. The charters don’t take the cuts because they are running a year behind in taking cuts. FCCS is immune to the cuts.
Kaufman replied that their reimbursement is adjusted by quarters. The last 2 quarters may be reduced.

Bill Haberman commented why don’t we have an election to have a board to oversee the charter school? How is their board selected? What retirement program do their teachers have? Reply – Larry Vale (present at the meeting) is a Framingham resident who is a newly elected board member – elected by the other board members (like a corporation). Bill – but who are the stockholders – not the citizens of Framingham. Kaufman replied that a charter school has to show a proposed board and a relationship to the town.

Norma Shulman asked where do we find the names of the board members – they are not on the web site which only has 4 names. Reply: 8 members are now on the board. Follow up: Do they have to file the board members, etc. Kaufman offered to show anyone interested their bylaws.

Walter Foster, another board member, was also present.

Donna Howland – concerned with drain on enrichment opportunities for the other schools. What did he mean by merit pay for their teachers?
Kaufman: You can be a great teacher without a master’s degree. They don’t want to have to give raises if people are not performing well. They do performance evaluation – including a staff portfolio, annual peer review, etc.

Barbara Magovsky asked about differences in curriculum from the public schools? Why can’t we just incorporate these programs in the public schools?
Kaufman – they have 3 teams. The teams each spend the year trying to answer a question that ties into the curriculum frameworks. They adjust the learning to each child’s learning style – which you can do with project based learning. Then they have an “expedition” – a project to present to the school at the end of the year.

Teri Miccciche – If they are so good, why aren’t people beating down the door.
Kaufman: There is a small waiting list, but parents are being badgered about not signing up.

Betty Muto – This was a state opportunity for this type of program. If we had such a concern for this program in Framingham, what did we do as a town to respond?

Pam Richardson – For the Horace Mann concept request, we couldn’t afford the 17 students per class they insisted on. There are parents in Framingham trying to address this at the state level. Other communities don’t want to pay for the charters either.

Pat Dunne reminded us that he was on the School Committee when Delman came to them, when we had a 1,000 student body at Walsh. Delman didn’t want to provide a program for the students who needed an alternative middle school program. We have an expeditionary model at Cameron, but this is the first year that the program would have been fully populated there. Framingham just can’t afford 17 per class, which FCCS was promising parents right now.

Walter Foster, Framingham resident and board member of FCCS, thinks it should be all about the students. A key issue for him as a parent of 3 was accessibility in the Framingham schools. He visits the FCCS to be sure that the goals of the school are being carried out. He has talked about how they can minimize the impact on the town.

Pam Richardson asked Rob Kaufman if they plan to expand to the HS grades. And if they have heard from the Sudbury woman who is interested in a elementary charter. Reply: No on the HS grades. He hears from lots of people about charters, maybe Sudbury was one. There might also be interest in one in Natick and maybe Waltham.

Debby asked them to post their minutes on the web, and what his and Delman’s salary and benefits are. (Response: $65,000 and $64,000.) Kaufman: They can’t afford a computer lab – they chose to put their money in 17 kids in small classes.