Board Briefs—February 20, 2007 In This Issue... Public Comments Board Member Reports Highlights from Superintendent's Report Selection of Name for New Middle School   Middle School Program Strategic Plan Consensus Items Board Comments—Good Things Happening at EHS!

Public Comments
- Charles Hay student Layne Coty informed the Board about their class project, raising money for Heifer International. He explained that Heifer International is a charity that helps people in need of food and a healthier life. Students created and sold a class calendar for the project. He invited Board members to attend when they present their check to a Heifer International representative on Friday, March 9, at 2:00 p.m. The class raised close to $700 for this project, almost $200 more than their goal.
- A community member addressed the Board regarding his neighborhood's support for keeping the Duncan property a park.
- Several parents addressed the Board regarding the MYP program proposed for the middle school and their concerns regarding training for this program. One parent also said they are hosting a foreign exchange student from Germany. The student is impressed with the caring attitude of his teachers at EHS and said this is something he has not experienced in Germany.

Board Member Reports
Englewood Education Foundation—Ms. Thompson reported the foundation is looking at how and when to best fill the EEF Executive Director position. She also said they will be electing new officers and inviting new members to join.
Parks and Recreation—Ms. Miller reported that the City of Englewood is waiting for the Board's decision on the Duncan property. The City and the Board are currently in negotiations. She also reported on upcoming City events.

Highlights from Superintendent's Report
CDE Audit Appeal—Representatives from Englewood Schools attended the CDE audit appeal with CDE Commissioner Moloney on February 14. Results from the appeal should be available February 21. Dr. McCabe noted that Ms. Hunt attended the audit on behalf of the Board and represented the Board very well.
2006-2007 Budget—Staff is continuing to work on the budget. There will be a Board workshop on March 6 at 5:30 p.m., prior to the regular Board meeting.

Selection of Name for New Middle School  Handout
The Board approved "Englewood Middle School" as the name for the new middle school. Board members thanked the naming committee for all their hard work. After some discussion, the Board suggested Englewood Middle School as an alternative to the recommended names. Since the recommended names were names of people, Board members thought it would be difficult to choose one name over another. Also, they noted that Englewood Middle School clearly denotes where the school is and ties the school to the community and to Englewood High School. Englewood Middle School was one of the names submitted to the naming committee.

Middle School Program  Handout
Ms. Braun, Flood Middle School Principal, and several middle school teachers provided an overview of the Middle Years Program (IB). They explained why they thought this program was the best choice for kids, as well as for teachers and how it aligns with the Strategic Plan. The program is designed to meet the needs of all students. Middle school teachers investigated four programs and overwhelmingly chose the IB Middle Years Program. There was some discussion around training costs. Training is a key piece of the program and will provide for consistent instructional practices across the entire middle school. Board members are very excited about what is happening at the middle school level. They are excited that students and teachers will be moving forward in a unified direction, using a program that has been proven to increase student achievement.

Strategic Plan  
The Board approved the 2007 Strategic Plan as presented by the Superintendent. See the Strategic Plan Web page for more information.

Consensus Items
The Board approved the following consensus items:
a. Personnel Recommendations & Addendum
b. Appointments to District Negotiations Team
It is recommended that the Board of Education approve the following individuals to serve on the Negotiations Team to represent the Board of Education in negotiations with the Englewood Educators Association during the 2007 contract negotiations:
- Linda McCaslin, Principal, Bishop Elementary
- Randy Johnson, Principal, Sinclair Middle School
- Dan Bernard, Attorney, Bernard, Lyons, Gaddis, and Kahn
- Adele Reester, Attorney, Bernard, Lyons, Gaddis, and Kahn
- Chris Gramstorff, Chief Operations Officer, Englewood Schools
c. District Authority to Approve Charter Schools  Handout

Board Comments—Good Things Happening at EHS
As part of Board Member's Choice, Mrs. Scaggiari said she wanted to celebrate some of the great things occurring at Englewood High School. EHS is really focusing on student achievement and she is excited about what they are doing. She shared information about the following:
- the EHS Internship program
- the Internet Cafe, which will be staffed by Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) students
- attendance intervention
- after school tutoring
- a new Student Advisory Council
- brown bag lunches, with discussions centered around staff-initiated topics
- involvement with MYP training
She believes the new team, Ms. Linda Torres, Ms. Erin Brophy, Mr. Patrick Sandoval, and Mr. Bobby Thomas, are doing a great job and she is very supportive of everything they are doing.

Executive Session
The Board moved into Executive Session to discuss sale of the Duncan property, in accordance with C.R.S. 24-6-402(4)(a).

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