2023-12-13 HUUSD Board Meeting Recap
- December 18, 2023
- Nathan Gingras
- 3.5 Minute Read
The HUUSD School Board met in person (with an option for remote participation) last Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
The meeting began with public comment:
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Deborah Hunter, member of the Harwood Unified Education Association, offered comments regarding the support staff negotiations at HUUSD.
Board Reports:
- Bond Committee: Ashley Woods provided an update on the public bond informational meetings. Reminders were given to spread the word about the survey and committee members as well as other board members shared what was being done to increase community input.
- Student Members: Naomi gave updates on the student survey to gather input from the student body around the Bond project.
Topics for discussion:
- Intensive Support Program (Brookside) - Dr. Mike, Mandy, Sarah, and Chris gave a presentation regarding this program at Brookside, which is addressing the increased level of behavioral and emotional support needed by students, and answered questions from Board members. The goal of this project is to improve support for students, reduce stress on teachers, and control costs while serving children in the least restrictive environment.
- Budget - Lisa explained that she received word from the State Agency of Education that some State data was determined to be incorrect, so she was not able to present fully accurate budget information. She noted that, due to the State miscalculations, budget information will not be available until after January 1st. This will be an agenda item at the January 10th meeting.
- December 20th meeting - it was agreed to cancel this meeting, and acknowledged that an extra meeting will be held in January.
In action items, the Board:
- Approved the following policies for adoption:
- E1 Fiscal Management and General Financial Accountability
- E10 Travel Reimbursement
- E22 Capitalization of Assets
- G14 Class Size
- B3 Board Member Conflict of Interest
- D12 Employee Unlawful Harassment
- E14 Security Cameras
- E23 Options-Based Response to Violent Intruder Drills, Fire Drills, and Emergency Preparedness
- To warn for deletion Policy D3: Staffing and Job Descriptions
- Approved a side letter with HUEA for long-term vacancies requiring coverage from existing teachers
- Approved participation in the Winooski Valley Regional Public School Choice Collaborative for the 2024-2025 school year
Board Members present:
Mike Bishop (Fayston), Ben Clark (Moretown), Danielle Dukette (Fayston), Kelley Hackett (Waterbury), Life LeGeros (Duxbury), Jake Pitman (Waterbury), Kristen Rodgers (Moretown), Bobbi Rood (Waitsfield), Cindy Senning (Duxbury), JB Weir (Waitsfield), Ashley Woods (Warren), Jonathan Young (Warren)
You are invited to participate in discussions on the future of Harwood High School. The School Board is seeking your input on how to proceed. The community will be receiving further information in the coming weeks with summaries of the three main categories. This is a major undertaking that will have an impact on school district programs and finances for years to come, so your input is crucial. Please participate!
Harwood Union High School project public meeting schedule:
- January 11: 6:00 pm Waitsfield gym
- January 16: 6:00 pm Fayston gym
The bond community meeting held at Warren Elementary school on December 5th can be viewed by clicking the link.
The Board welcomes feedback from our community and one of the easiest ways to share your thoughts is to send an email to [email protected], which will go to every Board member. Additionally, at the beginning of each Board meeting we invite public comment. Alternately, reach out to one of your neighbors who is on the school board and share your thoughts in a personal email or phone call (see a list of Board members and contact information at).
The Board’s next meeting will be on January 10, 2024 at 6pm. Community members may attend in person in the Harwood library or remotely via zoom (), or watch it broadcast live on Youtube (). Agendas and other related documents are available at huusd.org.