Verified EESAC Meeting Minutes

Approval of minutes: Mrs. Robledo called the meeting to order at 8:20 a.m. The minutes from May 16, 2017, 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 discussed EESAC assurances: We must hold at least four EESAC meetings (we will have at least eight); the principal and EESAC chairperson must verify the roster before Nov. 17; we must include the SIP action plan; and we must sign a document attesting that we will fulfill all requirements. Mr. Rivers also said the bylaws need to be updated to read that a quorum of 50 percent plus 1 is needed to approve official business; an extra line must be removed from the bylaws. Mr. Rivers also discussed the District Family and Community Engagement Practices Framework, which is supported by the District and includes Dads Take Your Child to School Day on Sept. 27 with other activities ongoing throughout the year. Mrs. Stroleny said we will make this event informational. Mr. Rivers discussed the 2017-18 Homework Plan: sixth-graders should have a daily average of 85 minutes of homework for all classes, while seventh- and eighth-graders should average 100 minutes daily. Homework should be manageable and meaningful and emphasize “quality over quantity.” Mrs. Robledo asked about the District guidelines and said her students are notified about projects and readings in advance. Science classes do this with their SAPs. Mrs. Stroleny said our main objective is to raise awareness that families are experiencing a great deal of stress. When students sign up for Carver, they know they will be doing extra work, but we don’t want to assign busy work. Also, a lot of our students are involved in extracurricular activities. Mrs. Stroleny asked Mr. Rivers about the SIP goals. He said we are still working on them and our school goal is to increase student achievement by improving core instruction in all content areas; the identified barrier is vertical planning.

Official business: Mrs. Stroleny asked that we continue to use EESAC funds (about $5,000) for technology. She said she can more easily meet other school needs from other accounts. The motion was approved unanimously to allot funding for technology.

Principal’s Message: Mrs. Stroleny discussed FSA and AP test results from last spring. In FSA English Language Arts, the grade 6 passing rate was 93 percent; in grade 7, it was 92 percent, and in grade 8, it was 95 percent. In FSA Math, the passing rate in grade 6 was 93 percent; in grade 7, it improved from 92 percent to 95 percent. On the Algebra EOC, 93 percent passed with 100 percent of seventh-graders passing and 91 percent of eighth-graders. On both the Geometry and Biology EOCs, 100 percent passed. On the Civics EOC, 98 percent passed, up from 97 percent the previous year. On the grade 8 Science FCAT, 87 percent passed, up from 86 percent the previous year. On both the French AP and German AP, 100 percent passed. In Italian, the passing rate was 87 percent, and in Spanish, it was 98 percent. Mrs. Stroleny congratulated Mrs. Robledo and the other AP teachers, adding that this year was difficult because of changes to recording procedure. She also recognized Mr. Hudson for his work in administering the AP assessments and coordinating the recording portions. Carver also recently received numerous honors. We received National Certification as a magnet school. We were in the first cohort for this award and it required considerable work. Ms. Basso, Lead Teacher, spearheaded this accomplishment. We also received the STEM Silver designation. Mrs. Stroleny said our Science instruction is phenomenal with two state Science Fair projects and three Broadcom winners last year. Dr. Garcia explained that this is the second year that we were one point away from the gold designation and that we have asked the District for guidance as to how we can reach gold. Mrs. Stroleny said orientations for all three grade levels took place. On Sept. 1, the German parents had a meet-and-greet session. Homeroom tutoring is scheduled to start on Sept. 6; this is not for failing students but to boost students on the bubble. The Club Fair was scheduled for Sept. 8 and Open House for Sept. 19. Sept. 21 and Oct. 2 are a teacher planning days. The first Italian Heritage Luncheon is on Sept. 27 along with the Science Fair workshop for eighth-grade parents. Sept. 28 is early release. The FIPA breakfast is on Sept. 29, along with snow cone sales for eighth-grade students during homeroom. The FIPA and GIPA picnics are scheduled for Sept. 9. Our next EESAC meeting is on Oct. 3.

Open Forum: Mrs. Daniels reported that soccer tryouts took place last week and cross country tryouts are upcoming. Mrs. Toledo reported that three teams entered the Internet Science and Technology Fair last spring and results were announced in June; one team received the highest honor, Meritorious Achievement Award, and another team was a finalist. Mrs. Fernandez said she is registering 10 students to compete in the Math Counts Competition 2018.

Adjournment: Mrs. Robledo adjourned the meeting at 8:57 a.m.