Verified EESAC Meeting Minutes

G. W. CARVER MIDDLE SCHOOL
Educational Excellence School Advisory Council
Ingrid Robledo, Chairperson

E.E.S.A.C. MEETING December 1, 2015

Council members in attendance:
Shelley Stroleny
Shelton Rivers
Annette Daniels
Guillermo Garcia
Shannon Sejeck
Richard Hudson
Maria Toledo
Shirelle Jackson
Jenny Murphy
Alexandra Torres
Daniel Toll

Council members absent:
Ingrid Robledo (chairperson)
Cheli Fernández
Vilma Gonzalez
Maria Alvarado
Margie Aragon
Ana Arguello
Sinclair Cerber
Richard Smithies
Pierre Apollon
Tom Kernan
J. Hiram Williams
Melissa Nobles

Guests
Maria de los Angeles-Fernandez
Jose Gonzalez

Approval of minutes: Mrs. Stroleny called the meeting to order at 8:25 a.m. Mrs. Robledo is attending a District meeting and therefore is not able to join us this morning. The minutes from November 5, 2015, were reviewed and approved.

SIP Review: The EESAC is the sole body responsible for the approval and implementation of the School Improvement Plan (SIP). Mr. Rivers said the attendance boundary committee meets on Dec. 3, but we are not affected by it this time. The public is welcome to attend. Midyear exams are ongoing, and this week we are doing makeups. We will use this information to compile data for this school year and to adjust the SIP as needed.

Principal’s Message: Mrs. Stroleny said Mrs. Winston was a Central Region Teacher of the Year finalist. This is truly a very high honor and we are very excited about it. Regretfully, she was not chosen as a District finalist. Mrs. Stroleny commented on events held prior to the Thanksgiving recess, including the eighth-grade fieldtrip to Coral Gables Senior High School, the sixth-grade fieldtrip to Bird Bowl, the Cybercrime presentations, and eighth-grade Hoop-It-Up. These events positively affected our school-wide attendance on these days. We have a very strong attendance plan that Mr. Rivers and Mr. Sejeck are implementing. Information about attendance is being included in the morning announcements. The superintendent is emphasizing attendance this year. The Principal’s Honor Roll luncheon took place on Nov. 30 with 105 students attending. The new German language consultant, Mr. Gottard, will visit Carver’s German classes on Dec. 1. We will hold a mathematics parent workshop on Dec. 2. Interim progress reports go home on Dec. 3. Carver is participating in Hour of Code, which is a District initiative. Hour of Code is a grassroots campaign goal, whose goal is for tens of millions of students to try an Hour of Code. Carver students will participate during homeroom on Dec. 3-4 and 7-8. Learning computer programming helps nurture problem-solving skills, logic, and creativity. By starting early, students will have a foundation for success in any 21st-century career path. Ms. Senior is organizing our school-wide participation. A grounds beautification project will take place on Dec. 5; beautiful grounds help improve attitudes. Mrs. Harmon’s music students will present a holiday concert at 6 p.m. Dec. 9. Dec. 10 is an early-release day; all faculty members are part of a professional-development group differentiated by interest and need. Eighth-graders will take a fieldtrip to Islands of Adventure on Dec. 11. On Dec. 15, students will have the opportunity to receive the Flu Mist vaccine. Mr. Rivers explained that the vaccine is free for all students who return a signed consent form but that the medical personnel will be on campus for only two hours. He also said vision screening for sixth-graders is upcoming. The PTSA Holiday Luncheon is on Dec. 15. Seventh-graders will participate in Kick-It-Up on Dec. 17. On Dec. 18, Richard Kerns will visit Carver to present his film “Ghosts of the Western Glades” to all grade levels. We return to school on Jan. 4 and our next EESAC meeting is Jan. 5. Mrs. Stoleny wished all members Happy Holidays.

Open Forum: Dr. Garcia said that Science Fair was a huge success, with students, teachers and the PTSA all contributing. Ten students were chosen to represent Carver at the District Science Fair. The superintendent has pushed to have all schools involved in the science fair and this limits the number of students we can send to the district fair. In past years, we often had 30 entries. Dr. Garcia also gave an update on the process for STEM designation: Departments are slowly sending him information but he needs more including lesson plans; we are waiting to hear about visitation dates. The boys’ and girls’ volleyball teams are competing in play-ins this week and if successful will move into the playoffs. Dr. Garcia said he is communicating with the UM women’s volleyball team to set up at visit to Carver. Carver has 16 teams of students participating for the first time in the E-Cybermission program. Mrs. Daniels said she is attending a meeting for “Fuel Up to Play 60,” a before-school play and breakfast program that promotes healthy eating and fitness. Mrs. Jackson encouraged attendance at Carver day for the Miami Heat game on Dec. 20.

Adjournment: Mrs. Stroleny adjourned the meeting at 8:49 a.m.