Verified EESAC Meeting Minutes

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

E.E.S.A.C. MEETING May 3, 2016

Council members in attendance:
Ingrid Robledo (chairperson)
Shelley Stroleny
Shelton Rivers
Annette Daniels
Cheli Fernández
Guillermo Garcia
Richard Hudson
Maria Toledo
Ana Arguello
Jenny Murphy
Alexandra Torres
J. Hiram Williams

Council members absent:
Shannon Sejeck
Maria Alvarado
Vilma Gonzalez
Margie Aragon
Pierre Apollon
Sinclair Cerber
Shirelle Jackson
Richard Smithies
Daniel Toll
Tom Kernan
Melissa Nobles

Guests
Maria de los Angeles-Fernandez

Approval of minutes: Mrs. Robledo called the meeting to order at 8:20 a.m. The minutes from March 1, 2016, 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 reported on the EESAC End of Year Assurances. These are ten state statutes that outline compliance requirements for EESAC. He passed around the checklist for members to examine. He also discussed and distributed the SIP End of Year and Planning document. This document was presented to the faculty at a meeting on April 28. He said departments have given feedback on the focus of next year’s professional development; this includes the gradual release model, effective writing strategies, and incorporating STEM lessons into the curriculum.

Official Business: The EESAC reviewed and approved the completed 2015-2016 EOY SIP Review and Planning Worksheet. The EESAC also reviewed the EOY Assurances Checklist ensuring that all requirements have been met.

Principal’s Message: Mrs. Stroleny began by announcing that G.W. Carver Middle School was recognized this month during the School Board meeting for receiving the prestigious Magnet School of America (MSA) Excellence Merit Award. Additionally, the school was also the recipient of the Five Star School Award from the State of Florida. All of the school's language programs have enjoyed special honors recently. G.W. Carver Middle School is a finalist for the national School of the Year competition sponsored by the Spanish Embassy. Paulina Texier won the Coup de Coeur prize in the Autoportaits competition sponsored by the French Consulate in Miami. In an international German language competition titled “My favorite Proverb,” Nicholas Ernest earned a first-place ribbon, and Emma Q-Giegeling and Nicole Hillis won third-place ribbons. Dinorah Vazquez, seventh-grader, won honorable mention for "Mi piace la lingua Italiana" sponsored by the MDCPS Bilingual Department. Honors received in the Fairchild Challenge include awards for the following entries: International Interviews, Lizard on the Loose, Botanical Illustration, and Green Treasures. In the Piano Slam Stem Poetry competition, Christopher Badillo was the District winner for Middle School. Athletic achievements include girls’ soccer team as county finalist and boys’ volleyball as South Division champion. G.W. Carver Middle School Hornets have enjoyed an exciting and rewarding school year and are winding up the year on a strong note! Friends of Carver on April 2 was a huge success. We made $16,863.66. This will be evenly split between both schools. We are thankful for this growth in our fundraising efforts (last year we raised close to $7,000). April has had a rigorous testing schedule during which the school's nine computer labs have been in full implementation. All teachers have given up multiple planning periods during the testing season, but this has been preferable to locking down the school for weeks. Mrs. Robledo said the legislators in Tallahassee are responsible for the large number of tests that students are required to take and urged parents to contact the Department of Education to express their displeasure. Mr. Hudson said this year’s testing schedule has run smoother than in past years. Mrs. Stroleny thanked Mrs. Castillo of her tireless work and long hours dedicated toward making our testing schedule run smoothly. She also noted that Mrs. Coto-Gonzalez has mostly dedicated her efforts toward the testing implementation. Dr. Garcia commented that although Carver teachers are adept at implementing the testing, they still feel the pressure. The Advanced Placement Spanish Language and Culture exam is taking place today, followed by German (May 6), French (May 10), and Italian (May 11). The MSA Conference is taking place this week; conference participants will visit Carver on May 4. Mrs. Stroleny is a presenter at the conference. The Teacher Appreciation Luncheon is May 5. The PTSA will hold its general meeting at 6 p.m. on May 12; the seventh-grade Science Fair night is also on May 12 at 5 p.m. Students from Mrs. Carlson-Yellen’s classes will participate in the Theodore Gibson Contest on May 12. The SIPA Paella event is on May 14. The Literacy Team will meet on May 16. Orientation for incoming IS students is on May 18. The end-of-year concert is on May 20. The Science Teacher of the Year Banquet is on May 20, and Mrs. Small is Carver’s nominee for the award. Mr. Sands will take a group of students to Washington, D.C. on May 22- 25. The Awards Ceremony is on May 27, and the Student Council election convention is May 31. High school reunion day is June 3. Francophone Day is June 6, and the eighth-grade banquet is June 9. We have two teachers retiring, Mrs. Green and Mrs. Senior. Mrs. Stroleny referred to them as “two pillars of our community.” This is the final scheduled EESAC meeting of the year. Mrs. Stroleny concluding by saying, “Thank you for your service on EESAC this year. Wishing everyone a safe and restful summer.”

Open Forum: Dr. Garcia gave an update on the STEM designation. He said is confident that Carver will attain the STEM designation when it is announced next school year. He said the designation must be earned on a yearly basis. All departments have given him showcase lessons to submit. He is working with Mr. Sejeck to coordinate community partners for all four marking periods. Most of the material only needs to be uploaded for the process to be completed. He also said we have qualified three students for the national Broadcom Science Competition. Mrs. Robledo discussed the European trip that took place over spring recess and said it was a big success along with the trip organized my Mrs. Moghani. Mrs. Robledo and Mrs. Winston made presentations at a recent AP workshop. Both teachers also will be readers for the grading of the exams this summer. Mrs. Daniels said we have almost finished a successful year of athletics. Most of the tennis team players qualified for the county finals. The boys’ basketball team has reached the second round of the playoffs. The golf team will compete in the county competition on May 9.

Adjournment: Mrs. Robledo adjourned the meeting at 9:00 a.m.