Verified EESAC Meeting Minutes

Approval of minutes: Mrs. Robledo called the meeting to order at 8:27 a.m. The minutes from February 4, 2009, were reviewed and approved. Mrs. Robledo then left to set up today’s practice Advanced Placement examination.

Principal’s message: Mrs. Gonzalez began by saying that the last few weeks of school are “very heavy and intense.” She then said that the school had “an incredible fair” on the theme of reading. Miss Skiadis said it was fun and she especially liked the baseball game. Mrs. Gonzalez thanked Mrs. Izquierdo and Mrs. Byrd as chairs, but added that many teachers worked hard in preparing for this school-wide event. The 2009 FCAT testing went well and Mrs. Gonzalez thanked the PTSA for delivering snacks. Today the Advanced Placement practice tests for eighth-grade IS students will be administered. Actual A.P. test dates are May 4 for French, May 5 for Spanish 5, and May 7 for German. Report cards go home today. On April 16, we will have an instructional review, focusing on instruction in language arts, mathematics, and science classes. A team from the region office will come to review our curriculum and its implementation. Mrs. Stroleny and Mr. Rivers prepared the paperwork related to this review. Four parents will leave EESAC because their children will be in high school next school year. The new parents that have been elected to take their places are: Dilip Sarkar, Terry Dawson, Alain Wurmser, and Linda Robertson-Viglucci. The District Writing assessment is on April 16 and 17, and Interim Assessments are on April 24 and 27 in math and science and April 28 and 29 in reading. The results of these examinations help us track student progress and determine future instruction. The annual Friends of Carver event is this Friday. The parents from both the elementary and middle school do a great job of organizing this event. Mrs. Gonzalez said she would like for all teachers to attend. April 23 is Take Your Child to Work Day and also early release. Mrs. Gonzalez urged parents to take their children to work. Students must submit a signed permission form so the absence is documented as a field trip. April 27 and 28 are orientation dates for our incoming sixth graders: April 27 is for IE and April 28 is for IS. Ms. Dudouet is taking a leave of absence for the rest of the year because of medical treatments that she must undertake. Mr. Sejeck’s wife gave birth to a healthy boy, but his wife had some complications and he will return as soon as possible. The 2008-09 School Improvement Plan strategies are being reviewed, as the 2009-2010 SIP is in progress. Mrs. Gonzalez explained that “ownership of teachers is important and we work to ensure that this is a ‘living’ document.” We are preparing the final three options for the Fairchild Challenge. We already have more than 1,000 points and hope to be a top winner. Mrs. Gramling has undertaken the leadership but many teachers are involved. The Awards Ceremonies for all grades are on May 18. Parents of winners will be invited. During review week everything stops at school, and final exams follow on May 28 (periods 2 and 6), May 29 (periods 3 and7), June 1 (periods 4 and 1), and June 2 (period 5). The eighth-grade banquet is on June 4. The last EESAC meeting is on May 6.

Mrs. Gonzalez reported on EESAC funds. The current balance for the EESAC account is $67. Because the District is approving only essential expenses, we have made many important purchases with EESAC funds. This includes aluminum frames and net for volleyball in the new gym for almost $2,000, science fair ribbons for $109.62, and staff development books on culture and global education for $699.16. The books will be used next school year for our professional development workshops relating to those topics. Mrs. Gonzalez said she could not buy computers with school funds but there is a great need for toner and CD-ROMs. Overall, EESAC has spent $4,614.35 this year. The Washington trip is April 30, and the student council convention is the following week. The Carver Hall of Fame ceremony is May 14. An Italian IS program is coming to Carver next fall. Originally the program was supposed to be at Carver but we did not have room for the students when the program began and it was placed at Ponce de Leon Middle School. Coral Way Elementary students once had automatic articulation to Carver,but now they remain at Coral Way, which has become a K-8 center. Also Ada Merritt K-8 has an IS program in grades 6-8. Coral Way students can still apply here but must go through the lottery. This gave us the room to bring the Italian program here. Italian will only be an elective at Ponce. Mr. Zini from Ponce is coming here to teach the Italian program and we are already preparing for next year. Mrs. Gonzalez said that “he is truly committed to the program.” Mrs. Plummer asked about news regarding transportation to magnet program and Mrs. Gonzalez said the superintendent is committed to magnet programs but she does not have specific information at this time.

Adjournment: Mrs. Gonzalez adjourned the meeting at 8:53 a.m.