CABE Journal - Dec 2014

Vol. 18, No.11 December 2014

w w w . c a b e . o r g

Connecticut Associationof Boards of Education Inc.81 Wolcott Hill RoadWethersfield, CT 06109-1242

PeriodicalPostage

PAIDHartford, CT

www.facebook.com/ConnecticutAssociationBoardsEducation

See Youin Court

PAGE 5

2014CABE/CAPSSConventionhighlights

CABE:Workingfor YOU

PAGE 15

TermLimits:Legal?

Patrice A. McCarthyDeputy Director/General Counsel, CABE

Delegates supportboard training

SEASONS GREETINGS!

East Hartford

Connecticut is StandingUp for Public Schools

Robert RaderExecutive Director

As President Richard Murrayannounced in his Banquet Speech onFriday night of the CABE/CAPSSConvention, NSBA and state associa-tions, including CABE with thesupport of CAPSS, have launched aninitiative to help dispel continuousnegative public discourse about ourschools.

NSBA has enlisted the help ofMagic Johnson, Montel Williams andSal Khan in this effort. NSBA hasshared videos and other informationwith the media and other groups onthis effort, which can be seen at http://www.nsba.org/advocacy/public-engagement/stand-4-public-schools .

Murray re-electedCABE President

At the Friday eveningbanquet, CABE ImmediatePast President LydiaTedone, Simsbury,announced the 2014-2015CABE Board of Directorsmembers. Re-elected werePresident Richard Murray,Killingly; First VicePresident Ann Gruenberg,Hampton; Vice Presidentfor Government Relations Robert Mitchell,Montville; Vice President for ProfessionalDevelopment Elaine Whitney, Westport;Secretary/Treasurer John Prins, Branford; andImmediate Past President Lydia Tedone.

Elected as Area Directors to the CABE Boardof Directors were: Area 1 Director DanielGentile, Plymouth; Area 2 Co-Directors DonaldHarris, Bloomfield, Jeffrey Currey, EastHartford; and Susan Karp, Glastonbury; Area 3Director Laura Bush, Vernon; Area 4 DirectorDouglas Smith Plainfield; Area 6 DirectorAndrea Veilleux, Stratford; Area 7 Co-DirectorsJohn Prins, Branford and Roxane McKay,Wallingford; Area 8 Director Lon Seidman,Essex.

Common Coreimplementation

going wellChris SeymourReporter, CABE

See COMMON page 19

The CABE Journal recently had theopportunity to touch base with Connecti-cut Chief Academic Officer DiannaRoberge-Wentzell and teacher CayFreeman of Sage Park Middle School inWindsor to get two different but equallyimportant perspectives from the frontlinesof Common Core implementation.

According to Freeman, who teaches6th, 7th and 8th grade math interventionclasses using the SRBI model, the con-version has been going well. “Now, morethan a year into the new standards, I cansay that it’s definitely been a change forthe better,” she said.

“To be sure, these new standards aremore cognitively demanding,” Freemanfurthered. “They require a lot morefrontloading of learning about numberconcepts and the value of numbers as afoundation for later higher level math. ButI see the potential for greater and truermath learning. It’s not so much aboutmemorizing rules and learning tricksanymore – it’s all about understandingwhat’s happening with the numbers as youdo the math problems. And for mystudents, who’ve always struggled tomemorize rules and learn mathematicalalgorithms that made no sense to them,this is finally a way to be successful.”

At the state level, things are also goingwell. A Governor’s taskforce – made upof 25 people, including teachers, parents,administrators and, board members – metabout a dozen times from March to Junein order to examine the Common Coreimplementation and make recommenda-tions for improvement, according toRoberge-Wentzell, who was also on thetaskforce.

“It was a great experience,” sherecalled. “And we learned so much fromstudying districts where it was going well;it was such a great way to really think ofwhat we could do differently.”See CONNECTICUT page 18

CABE President Richard Murraystated that “Astronaut RickMastracchio has agreed to be ourfirst Connecticut ‘star’ ”, an appro-priate designation for this spaceexplorer.

Astronaut Mastracchio taped avideofor thecam-paignwhilehe wasatCon-vention,which will soon be on the CABEwebsite and Ann Baldwin ofBaldwin Media has an article aboutthis on page 14 of this Journal.

We are hopeful that your districtswill also find individuals who willSTAND UP FOR PUBLICSCHOOLS! in your communities.

See DELEGATE page 5

CABE recently held its annual DelegateAssembly to vote on resolutions that are ourguiding principles. In preparation for theDelegate Assembly, CABE’s ResolutionsCommittee chaired by Becky Tyrell (Plainville)met twice over the summer to discussmodifications to existing resolutions as well asproposed resolutions submitted by member schoolboards. The Committee developed a resolution

PAGE 9 PAGE 17

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEERichard Murray .................................................. President, KillinglyAnn Gruenberg ................................. First Vice President, HamptonRobert Mitchell ................ VP for Government Relations, MontvilleElaine Whitney ........... VP for Professional Development, WestportJohn Prins ......................................... Secretary/Treasurer, BranfordLydia Tedone ............................................ Immediate Past PresidentDonald Harris ........................................................ Member at Large

AREA DIRECTORSDaniel Gentile ......................................... Area 1 Director, PlymouthJeffrey Currey ............................. Area 2 Co-Director, East HartfordSusan Karp ................................... Area 2 Co-Director, GlastonburyDonald Harris ................................. Area 2 Co-Director, BloomfieldLaura Bush ................................................. Area 3 Director, VernonDouglas Smith ........................................ Area 4 Director, PlainfieldAndrea Veilleux ................................ Area 6 Co-Director, StratfordJennifer Dayton ............................. Area 6 Co-Director, GreenwichRoxane McKay ............................. Area 7 Co-Director, WallingfordJohn Prins ......................................... Area 7 Co-Director, BranfordLon Seidman .................................................Area 8 Director, EssexAndrea Ackerman ..................................... Area 9 Director, Groton

ASSOCIATESEileen Baker .............................................. Associate, Old SaybrookSharon Beloin-Saavedra .............................. Associate, New BritainGary Brochu .......................................................... Associate, BerlinRobert Guthrie .............................................. Associate, West HavenRobert Trefry ........... Associate, CT Technical High School System

COMMITTEE CHAIRSElizabeth Brown ......................... Chair, State Relations, WaterburyDonald Harris ......................... Chair, Federal Relations, BloomfieldBecky Tyrrell ...................................... Chair, Resolutions, Plainville

CITY REPRESENTATIVESJacqueline Kelleher ....................... City Representative, BridgeportMatthew Poland ................................ City Representative, HartfordCarlos Torre .................................. City Representative, New HavenPolly Rauh ........................................ City Representative, StamfordCharles Stango ............................... City Representative, Waterbury

STAFFRobert Rader ....................................................................... Executive DirectorPatrice McCarthy .................................. Deputy Director and General CounselBonnie Carney ............................................ Sr. Staff Associate for PublicationsNicholas Caruso ............................................ Sr. Staff Assoc. for Field Service and Coord. of TechnologySheila McKay ............................. Sr. Staff Associate for Government RelationsKelly Moyher ......................................................................... Sr. Staff AttorneyVincent Mustaro ..................................... Sr. Staff Associate for Policy ServiceLisa Steimer .............................. Sr. Staff Assoc. for Professional DevelopmentTeresa Costa .................................. Coordinator of Finance and AdministrationPamela Brooks ......................... Sr. Admin. Assoc. for Policy Ser. /Search Ser.Terry DeMars ............................................... Admin. Assoc. for Policy ServiceGail Heath ........................................ Admin. Assoc. for Government RelationsWilmarie Newton ........................................ Admin. Assoc. for Labor RelationsDenise Roberts .................................... Admin. Asst. for Membership ServicesCorliss Ucci .................................. Receptionist/Asst. to the Executive Director

Richard Murray

2 The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/December 2014

PRESIDENT COMMENTARY

CABE Board of Directors

Looking forward to 2015

Vision: CABE is passionate about strengtheningpublic education through high-performing,

transformative local school board/superintendentleadership teams that inspire success for each child.

Mission: To assist local and regional boards of educationin providing high quality education for all

Connecticut children through effective leadership.

CABESearchServices

For an update or more informationon vacancies go to our website:

www.cabe.org

Call CABEfor your

recruiting needs

For more information contact,CABE Search Services, 860-539-7594

Jacqueline V. Jacoby,Senior Search Consultant

Paul Gagliarducci • Associate ConsultantMary Broderick - Associate Consultant

Bob King • Associate ConsultantP.O. Box 290252,

Wethersfield, CT 06129-0252www.cabe.org/support

Equal Opportunity Employers

Thank you. It has been an honor serving as yourpresident this year. I have met so many wonderful andcommitted board members and I am humbled by yourpassion for public education and the children we serve. CABE is only as strong as its members and theirwillingness to step-up and focus on issues that mayextend beyond their own districts borders.

The CABE Executive Committee both collectivelyand individually has a laser-like focus on the issuesfacing public education as well as continuing to promoteCABE as a leading voice for local governance.

Our Board of Directors and Area Directors have animportant role to play in advocating for public educationand being an important conduit between the ExecutiveCommittee and local school boards. With the electionsfinally over, CABE has vital business to attend to in thecoming year, namely educating the many new Legislatorson our priorities for local education and local gover-nance. It is so important for boards of education to knowwho their Area Director is and vice-a-versa. We need tohave as much communication as possible with localboards.

I recently attended the New York State School BoardsAnnual Conference. The keynote Speaker was a mannamed Wes Moore. Mr. Moore wrote a book titled, TheOther Wes Moore; the title was not of his choosing. Thebook is about two kids named Wes Moore, who hap-pened to reside a few blocks apart in Baltimore.

They both had difficult childhoods without fathers andtroubles in school and on the streets. One grew up to bea Rhodes Scholar and a decorated member of the 82ndAirborne in Afghanistan, and the other Wes Mooreended up serving a life sentence after being convicted ofmurder. The subtitle of the book is, “One name, twofates”. Mr. Moore is a riveting speaker and promised methat he would come to Connecticut.

The question that arises for me is how as school boardmembers we can change the dichotomy of these twofates? What can we do through policy or other measures

to lessen the likeli-hood of the nega-tive consequencesfaced by many likethe other Wes?

One area wherewe need to examineis our schooldiscipline policies.Why are children ofcolor four to sixtimes more likely tobe suspended fromschool? I went to asessionsponsored by theNew York Caucusof Black SchoolBoard Members to hopefully find some answers for thisand other questions. Joaquin Tamayo Jr., is the SpecialAssistant, Office of Elementary and Secondary Educa-tion, at the U.S. Department of Education, did a sessiontitled “School Discipline, Ways to Reduce Suspensionswhile Maintaining Positive Learning Environments”.

We got an overview of the “Supportive SchoolDiscipline Initiative”, a discipline guidance packagejointly presented as a “Dear Colleague” letter by theDepartments of Justice and Education. Mr. Tamayo alsoprovided links to webinars and lots of discipline data andresources at the “Ed.gov/school-discipline” website. Thissite is packed with information pertaining to the Support-ive School Discipline initiative, including much neededguidance for our schools.

Mr. Tamayo presented several Department of Educa-tion guiding principles that would reinforce a positiveschool climate that would ensure consequences withequity. The guiding principles each come with severalactions, which include promoting social and emotionallearning, professional development for all staff includingschool resource officers, on clear, appropriate, propor-tional discipline and reducing inappropriate referrals tothe justice system which often leads to what is known asthe school to prison pipeline. Boards of Education needto create policies that include appropriate procedures anddue process for all students and that removes kids fromclass and or school as a last resort.

I specifically asked Mr. Tamayo about zero tolerancepolicies, his response was unequivocal, all the data hehas seen is clear, zero tolerance absolutely does notwork. I will have more to offer on this subject in futureCABE Journals.

So, we need to keep educating ourselves as boardmembers so that we can be effective advocates for publiceducation and see increased opportunities for all studentsto learn and succeed to their highest potential and I domean ALL students.

CABE has had a strong year. We have maintainedand strengthened our many partnerships and coalitions insupport of local governance of public schools. TheImmediate Past President and I have worked to increasecommunication and ties to school board members inmany of the states surrounding Connecticut. Because ofso many dedicated volunteer school board members ourvoice is becoming stronger.

The CABE Staff under the admirable and capableleadership of Bob Rader and Patrice McCarthy contin-ues to support the mission of supporting local boards ofeducation. We cannot do what we do without the won-derfully dedicated hard working CABE Staff. And aspecial shout-out to Lisa Steimer, who works so hard toensure that all of us have a meaningful experience eachand every year at the CABE/CAPSS Convention.

I hope you all take some time to get to know thesefine people who really work for us, Connecticut’s schoolboard members, if you haven’t already done so.

Thanks, once again I am honored to serve as yourPresident for another year. Thank you so much.

The CABE Journal (ISSN 1092-1818) is published monthly except acombined issue for July/August as a member service of the Connecti-cut Association of Boards of Education, 81 Wolcott Hill Road,Wethersfield, CT 06109, (860) 571-7446. CABE membership duesinclude $30 per person for each individual who receives The CABEJournal. The subscription rate for nonmembers is $75. Associationmembership dues include a subscription for each board member,superintendent, assistant superintendent and business manager. Thecompanies and advertisements found in The CABE Journal are notnecessarily endorsed by CABE. “Periodicals Postage Paid at Hartford,CT.” POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The CABE Journal,CABE, 81 Wolcott Hill Road, Wethersfield, CT 06109-1242. Email:[email protected] can find the CABE Journal online at: www.cabe.org/userlogin.cfm?pp=84&userrequest=true&keyrequest=false&userpage=84

Robert Rader

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR COMMENTARY

The Journal – Connecticut Association of Boards of Education/December 2014 3

Learn from three failed PR campaigns!CABE AffiliateMembers

BUSINESS AFFILIATESDIAMOND MEMBER

Finalsite

GOLD MEMBERSAdvanced Corporate Networking

dba. Digital BackOfficeBerchem, Moses & Devlin

Centris GroupGuidance Counselorsfor Senior TeachersPullman & Comley

Shipman & Goodwin

SILVER MEMBERSAnthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield

Arthur J. Gallagher & CompanyCorporate Cost Control

Milliman, Inc.Milone & MacBroom, Inc.

Perkins & EastmanSiegel, O’Connor, O’Donnell & Beck

The Segal Company

BRONZE PLUS MEMBERSBL Companies

Friar AssociatesGoldstein & Peck, P.C.Milone & MacBroom

Morganti GroupO & G Industries

The S/L/A/M CollaborativeTrane

BRONZE MEMBERSBrown & Brown Insurance

Chinni & Meuser LLCDattco Inc.

Fuller & D’AngeloArchitects and Planners

JCJ ArchitectureKainen, Escalera & McHale, P.C.

The Lexington GroupMuschell & Simoncelli

Ovations Benefits GroupSuisman Shapiro Attorneys at Law

EDUCATIONALAFFILIATES

American School for the DeafArea Cooperative Educational Services

Capitol Region Education CouncilThe College Board

Connecticut Association of SchoolBusiness Officials

Connecticut Center for School ChangeConnecticut School Buildings

and Grounds AssociationCooperative Educational Services

EASTCONNEDUCATION CONNECTION

LEARNUnified School District #1

The October 8th edition of EducationWeek contained a particularly interestingop-ed, entitled “What a Vaccination StudyTaught Us About Transforming Schoolsand Districts”. It was written by an edu-cational consultant, a professor emerita ofeducational administration at CaliforniaState University and the superintendent ofthe Mountain View School District in LosAngeles County.

The authors heard about a study thathad examined parents’ concerns aboutimmunizing newborns and how ineffec-tive pro-vaccination campaigns had been.

The study surprised them in that par-ents who had been anti-vaccination “be-came even more determined not to vac-cinate their children after the campaign.”According to the report, the campaigns“had no effect on public opinion. None.”

The article struck me as a metaphor forwhat the last two years have meant ineducation reform, especially concerningCommon Core State Standards. There arelessons for all of us, Board members,superintendents and others in the authors’discussion.

Communications CampaignsAfter examining the results of the

study, the authors, La Salle, Johnson andFrench, began to look closer at how thosein education typically try to make theirarguments:

First, they try to use the “scientificapproach”, that is, using research andother tools to make their argument, ob-viously based on the issue.

Second, if the first has not worked,they move to the “cuz-I-said-so default”,arguing that, for instance, federal regula-tions require or State education lawmandates, that something happen consis-tent with their argument. But, not every-one “trusts the rules.”

The third approach is an appeal toemotion. Sometimes it is taking an actualcase and presenting that case in a mannerin which probably everyone would empa-thize. My education example is: ifJohnny is bullied, wouldn’t everyoneempathize with him and want rules en-suring it doesn’t happen again?

These types of appeals do not seem towork well anymore. That should be par-ticularly concerning for school Boardmembers and superintendents since ra-tional discussion and using persuasion iscritical for the important work you do.

The authors believe that the “reasonsthe parents rejected the information aboutthe vaccinations were based on cognitivebias. We believe in accordance with ourbelieve systems: We are our beliefs.”

Thus, changing a non-vaccinatingparent’s opinion on the need to vaccinatetheir child would imply they were notgood parents for not having immunizedtheir child. This is a painful notion forany parent. Therefore, “they found rea-

sons to reject the information, whetherchallenging its veracity, the related po-litical agenda, or the credibility of themessengers.”

How does one counter an argument,made in good faith, that is, not being usedas a fig leaf for some other agenda? Inthis time of distrust in government andcynicism for virtually all institutions, howshould you argue your case?

The authors suggest that while theyrecognize “there is no ‘right’ way to ap-proach communication”, it is more abouthow educators and, I would add, boardmembers, view others and ourselves.

Do we see ourselves as the experts,“convincing others that they must see theworld our way? If so, are we more focus-ed on being right than on doing right?”

Boards as Convenersof the Community

If, instead, do we see ourselves as“members of a community given a mostprecious trust, that of educating ourchildren?” If so, the authors state, thelogical and moral imperative [is] that wecontinue our own thinking”.

We must be open to new ideas, newinformation and new opinions.

They suggest that instead of over-whelming people using the methods thatdid not work, we should turn issues intochallenges in which both the messenger(s)and the recipient(s) see the need to under-stand and tackle the issue together.

While they admit that it is difficult inmany cases to be more collaborative, be-cause of time and other constraints,“[g]enuine conversation — not informa-tion campaigns — will yield the personaland collective growth we need to moveeducation forward.”

In applying this to the work of Boards,collaboration is required in many cases,since the vote of any Board is contingenton building a majority. But, the largerengagement, with either the fictional, butall-too-real, taxpayer who cannot afford topay more at budget time, or parents tryingto understand the benefits and weaknessesof Connecticut Core collaboration, we

need better processes for decisionmaking.

For issues like these that can split acommunity, encouraging more people tobe involved in the process, is frankly, arole that Boards should not only play, butstrongly encourage.

We often talk about Boards as “con-veners of the community”. The underly-ing idea that real discussion, acknowledg-ing differences in opinion and the value ofthose who have these opinions is criticalin developing consensus. But, perhapsmost important is the idea that all shouldbe working towards an agreeable solution.

Yes, that may result in persons un-happy that their opinions did not win theday.

However, for Boards and Superinten-dents, compromise and attempting tomollify those who are unhappy with thedecision, can pay big dividends. Remem-ber that some people just want to vent andbe acknowledged. Doing that can behugely helpful in building consensus.

Perhaps if those who developed Com-mon Core had done this, there would havebeen less acrimony and more agreement.While PR campaigns, even if based inresearch, fact and law are sometimeshelpful, nothing works as well as realconversations.

It is the difference between talkingwith people and talking at people. Thelatter might have been necessary at youngages, but it does nothing to honor thevalidity of other people’s thoughts orviews.

Remember that your ability to useyour emotional intelligence to empa-thize, to understand and to actively listenis one of your most important skills. It iswhat you must use if you want to per-suade, convince or even just inform.

In these days of cynicism, being aleader will require even more use of theseskills than ever before.

“. . . for Boards and Su-perintendents, compro-mise and attempting tomollify those who areunhappy with the deci-sion, can pay big divi-dends. . . .some peoplejust want to vent and beacknowledged. . . .thatcan be hugely helpful inbuilding consensus.”


“There is something great happeninghere in Bridgeport!” says FrancesRabinowitz, Interim Superintendent of theBridgeport Public Schools, as she leadsthe way in bringing a unique, joyfulapproach for public school reform to herschool district.

The Bridgeport Total Learning Initia-tive (BTLI) is a model birth to age nineapproach that has been shown to be ef-fective in increasing teacher quality; en-gaging parents, family, and community;improving classroom/school climate; andultimately reducing the achievement gap.

“I have seen first-hand the joy ofparents and infants/toddlers, sharing inmusic and movement classes that developessential pre-reading skills such as se-quencing, attentive listening, and pat-terning. I am dedicated to expanding tomore schools, to engage an increasingnumber of families and their children inBridgeport. The parental participation inthe program has been truly extraordi-nary.”

– Superintendent Rabinowitz

The Issue –The Achievement Gap

The plight of the Bridgeport PublicSchools is common knowledge in theState and beyond. The Bridgeport ChildAdvocacy Coalition estimates that 25%(or 2,540 children) of all Bridgeportchildren under the age of five are living inpoverty.1 Students in Bridgeport schoolsemerge significantly behind their peersfrom the surrounding more affluent com-munities on all achievement measures as aresult of these economic and socialconditions.

The Plan – Developmentof a Model Approach

The BTLI is not a new “commodity” inthe Bridgeport Public Schools. Started in2006, the Initiative was developed byAction for Bridgeport Community Devel-opment (ABCD), in collaboration with theState of Connecticut, Bridgeport Board ofEducation, arts education IDEAS LLC,Child First, The Michael Cohen Group,and Music Together™. The goal of theInitiative was to develop and implement a

comprehensiveand “wholechild” approachto addressing theachievementgap.

Expandingthe Head Startmodel, the TotalLearningapproach isgrounded in thebelief that inorder to effec-tively learn, children must be supportedsocially, academically, and throughaddressing the needs of the family as awhole, starting at birth and extending upthrough the fourth grade.

The Bridgeport Total Learn-ing Initiative –What is it?

Intentionally designed and meticu-lously studied, the BTLI’s multi-facetedapproach is comprised of multiple com-ponents, both educational and social.

Allison LoganDirector of Educational Initiatives, ABCD, Inc.

“Expect Great Things”:From Slogan to Reality in Bridgeport, CT

• An Enhanced Learning Environ-ment through multi-sensoryteaching and learning, powerfulprofessional development PK-4,smaller staff ratio, and extendedschool day and year.

• Family Support through familyadvocates, workshops, parentevents, and creation of familyservice plans.

• Parent Infant/Toddler Engage-ment through Music Togetherclasses that bring parents and theiryoungest children together, engag-ing in music/movement activitiesthat foster brain development andearly learning skills.

• Independent Research throughgold standard measures, looking atstudent/child achievement bothsocial and academic, teacher ef-ficacy and interactions, parentengagement, and overall effective-ness of the approach.

Impact of the Approach –Does it work?The Bridgeport TotalLearning Initiative works

The most recent evaluation demon-strated that teachers made statisticallysignificant gains in classroom instructionand that students in TLI classrooms im-proved in their CMT scores at higherrates than at control schools. Evaluationresults have also shown that when imple-mented with fidelity, children in TLIclassrooms demonstrate significantlyhigher gains in early reading, literacy, andmath skills than students in controlclassrooms.

“The BTLI provides a best prac-tice model for sustaining public-private partnerships to combat theoverwhelming consequences ofpoverty.”

In addition to the evaluative results,there has been overwhelming teacher,administration, parental, and studentsupport of the initiative. Teachers havenoted a renewed joy in teaching, withtheir students demonstrating a markedincrease in engagement and achievement.Parents have joyfully engaged in theschool community with extraordinaryparticipation, feeling supported and apartner in their children’s learning.

The Western Connecticut Academy ofInternational Studies (AIS) – a magnetelementary school in Danbury – has amission of developing socially respon-sible global citizens who use technologyto access the world. And it’s a missionstatement that AIS clearly lives up to.

The K-5 school was selected by theConnecticut Association of Schools as“Elementary School of the Year” for2014-15. AIS was chosen from a numberof Connecticut elementary schools and“clearly distinguished itself as a consum-mate elementary school,” according to thenon-profit organization.

The school’s international studiestheme centers on the concept of peace andthe role of peacekeepers in the world.Students start the day reciting AIS PeacePledge in both English and Spanish. Anemphasis on international studies andworld language facilitates critical thinkingand broadens mastery of the districtcurriculum.

By focusing on being a part of thelarger community, students learn aboutenvironmental awareness by food com-posting in their cafeteria, tending to acommunity garden, bonding with localorganizations and recycling. A respectfulrelationship between parents, staff andcommunity is a bridge that joins them inthe common goal of challenging andnurturing the growth of each and everychild.

Danbury’s AIS magnet school named‘Elementary School of the Year’

When asked to find words to describetheir school, a panel of AIS studentsresponded with “peaceful, safe, kind,thankful and clean.” Their unrehearsedresponses were part of the evaluationprocess.

The criteria used toevaluate the schoolincluded whether theschool was welcomingto students and visitors,and whether the schoolhad an appropriatelydeveloped andresearch-basedcurriculum. Other itemsrated included whethertechnology at the schoolsupported instruction.

Most importantly, asindicated in the CASaward, the AIS magnet school is centeredon the students, not the teachers, andprovides a learning environment thatsupports instruction and encourageshigher-order thinking skills.

“We are all thrilled that our magnetschool has received this award,” saidSuperintendent Dr. Sal Pascarella. “Theschool’s principal, Dr. Helena Nitowski,has been at the helm of this school since itopened in 2006. Her leadership skills andacumen have taken the school into thispositive and progressive direction.

Together with staff, the internationaland global studies theme has been incorp-orated into the core curriculum and has

been supported by parents and thecommunity. This recognition is arepresentation of the hard work, ofadministration and faculty, the rigor of theDanbury Core Curriculum, and the focuson international studies.”

Under theleadership of Nitowski,said CAS, the schoolhas providededucational programsconducive to meetingthe needs of all of itsstudents. The school’ssense of community, itsoutstanding programs,its level of academicachievement, and theoverwhelming positivefeeling made it thechoice of the CAS

Outstanding Elementary School of TheYear Award. The school will be presentedwith an award at the CAS Recognition ofExcellence in Education Celebration atthe Aqua Turf Club in Southington onNov. 19.

CAS is a non-profit educationalorganization. An informed leader inConnecticut’s education system, CASprovides services to the state’s K-12schools in areas ranging from academicsto athletics. The association representsmore than 1,100 schools in the state.

The AIS magnet school, located onDanbury’s Westside, is open to all Please see BRIDGEPORT page 18

Please see DANBURY page 18

Robin ProveyDanbury AIS Magnet School

See You in Court – The Nutmeg Board of Education

A Nutmeg Board of Education attempts to streamline their board meetingsThomas B. Mooney, Esq.Shipman & Goodwin


The Nutmeg Board of Educationmakes many mistakes. The latest imbro-glio created by the board will be reportedhere each issue, followed by an explana-tion of what the board should have done.Though not intended as legal advice,these situations may help board membersavoid common problems.

The meetings of the Nutmeg Board ofEducation have been way too long. Theyalways get off to a slow start becausetypically the first hour or more is devotedto Public Comment, which in reality ismore like Target Practice, as residentafter resident stands up and takes shots atthe Board.

One resident even pools minutes fromothers so that he can excoriate the Boardfor a full fifteen minutes each meeting.By the time the Board gets to its agenda,feelings are hurt and nerves are frayed.Often it is after midnight before themeeting concludes.

At the urging of veteran Boardmember Bob Bombast, Ms. BoardChairperson put “Board Operation” onthe agenda for the meeting yesterday. Atthe beginning of meeting, Bob thenmoved to amend the agenda to make“Board Operation” the first agenda item.

The Board promptly agreed, and thenBob moved that the Board convene intoexecutive session to discuss “Boardevaluation” under the “Board Operation”agenda item. There was an indignantmurmur from those who had come to themeeting to criticize the Board duringPublic Comment, but the Board wasundeterred.

Once the Board was in executivesession, Bob unveiled his plan for moreefficient Board operation. “First,” Boburged, “we must stop letting the publickick us around. We start our meetings insuch a negative way!”

Board member Mal Content reluc-tantly disagreed. “I wish we could shutthem up, but don’t we have to give thepublic a chance to speak? This isAmerica . . . .”

Ms. Chairperson concurred. “Wecan’t just cut them out. But we canfurther limit their time to, say, twominutes. That would help.”

“What else would help,” interjectedPenny Pincher, “is if we all kept ourmouths shut and didn’t try to respond.

Attorney Thomas B. Mooney (Shipman & Goodwin) calls the Annual Meeting of the NutmegBoard of Education to order. The meeting was held at the 2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention. Castmembers were: Dave Erwin, (Berlin) Mr. Superintendent; Irene Burgess, (Ridgefield) BoardMember; Eileen Baker, (Old Saybrook) Board Member; Elaine Whitney, (Westport) Board Mem-ber and CABE Vice President for Professional Development; Terry Schmitt, (West Hartford)Board Member; Charles Carey, (Wethersfield) Board Member; and Jessica Ritter, (Shipman &Goodwin) Bruna, NUTS Rep.

Bob, you drive me crazy when you dothat.”

“Why don’t you mind your knitting,Penny?” Bob responded. “Sometimes weneed to set the record straight. And comeon, Board members, we have to thinkcreatively here. What else can we do tostreamline our meetings?”

Mr. Superintendent offered a sugges-tion. “You guys are always getting intothe weeds. Why don’t we put most actionitems on a consent agenda that we can justpass at the beginning of the meeting? Wecan save our energy for new significantitems.”

Penny and Mal immediately agreed, butBob was wary. “The devil is in thedetails, Mr. Superintendent,” Bob re-sponded. “We Board members have animportant oversight role that extends toalmost everything.”

“Well, if you don’t trust me. . . ,” amiffed Mr. Superintendent began to say.

“Let’s not go there,” interrupted Ms.Chairperson. “Let’s limit Public Com-ment to positive comments and shorten thespeaker’s time to two minutes. We candeal with the idea of a consent agendalater. Are we all set for now?”

Without dissent, Ms. Chairpersonterminated the executive session discus-sion and reconvened the Board meeting inpublic session. When Ms. Chairpersonannounced these changes, however, theBoard’s most vocal critics vowed achallenge.

Will the Board be able to make thesechanges and operate more efficiently?

As with so many legal issues, theanswers here are yes and no.

First, the Board can do much of what itdiscussed. Boards of education have nolegal obligation to provide opportunity forpublic comment. Board of educationmeeting are meetings in public, not publicmeetings.

When a board of education decides tooffer the public an opportunity forcomment, it is free to decide when it willoffer such opportunity. The board canalso limit the overall time it will spend onhearing from the public. For example, itwould be fine to devote thirty minutes topublic comment at the beginning of themeeting and move further public commentto the end of the meeting or even to thenext meeting.

The board may also limit the time that

people can speak (and no one has a rightto “pool” minutes of others). The key isthat such time restrictions must beimposed even-handedly. When a board ofeducation opens a forum for the public tospeak, it may not discriminate againstspeakers on the content of their speech.

Time limitations are fine as long asthey are applied in the same manner to allspeakers, those with popular speech (e.g.,speech praising the board) as well asthose with critical speech.

That said, in taking these actions theBoard overstepped in various ways. First,boards of education cannot prohibitmembers of the public from makingcomments critical of the board or ofdistrict employees. Given that publiccomment is a forum protected by the FirstAmendment, boards of education cannotpick and choose what speech to allow.

If members of the public can say nicethings, they can say not-so-nice things.Of course, the board may enforce prohibi-tions against ad hominum attacks,screaming, yelling and other inappropriatebehavior. But boards cannot limit thepublic to “happy talk.”

Board members are also well-advisedto refrain from engaging in a discussionwith members of the public over theircomments. A brief correction or redirec-tion is not a problem. However, publiccomment is a time for the public to speak,not a time for the board to conductsubstantive discussions.

In an extreme case, such discussioncould even be a violation of the FOIA,because board members would bediscussing a topic during public commentthat was not on the board’s agenda for theevening.

Annual meeting of theNutmeg Board of Education

The Board also erred in discussingmost of these issues in executive session.To be sure, the provision in the FOIApermitting executive session discussion ofthe “appointment, employment, perfor-mance, evaluation, health or dismissal ofa public officer or employee” applies toboard members.

Accordingly, board members candiscuss the performance of individualboard members in executive session(subject to the right of any member torequire open session discussion as to himor her). Penny’s comments about Bob,for example, were appropriate to execu-tive session. More general discussion ofboard operation, however, should be heldin open session.

Finally, there are ways to streamlineoperation, whether or not a board changesits approach to public comment. Manyboard actions are technical in nature, withno need for discussion. Such items caninclude approval of the minutes of theprevious meeting, approval of appoint-ments, acceptance of resignations, and thelike.

Some boards place such items on aconsent agenda, on which the board takesaction early in the meeting. When aconsent agenda is used, board memberscan request that the item be removed fromthe consent agenda so that it can beseparately discussed.

However, many items can be addressedthrough the consent agenda withoutdebate or discussion.

Attorney Thomas B. Mooney is a part-ner in the Hartford law firm of Shipman &Goodwin who works frequently withboards of education. Mooney is a regularcontributor to the CABE Journal.

Delegates(continued from page 1)supporting required professionaldevelopment for school board members,which was overwhelmingly adopted bythe delegates.

Among the resolutions discussed wereeducation finance, educator evaluation,Common Core Standards, specialeducation burden of proof, minimumbudget requirement, universal preschool,mandates, and interdistrict collaboration.

Updates were provided on the manystate task forces including thoseaddressing behavioral health services,concussions, and special education.

CABE’s State Relations Committeewill meet shortly to identify legislativepriorities for the upcoming session.

Watch your mail in January for a copyof the Whole Agenda describing thepositions of the Association, and plan toattend Day-on-the-Hill – March 25,2015.


CABE Delegate Assembly - November 13, 2014

Save the DateMarch 25, 2015

CABE’s Day on the HillThe Bushnell, Autorino Great Hall,

Capitol Avenue, Hartford

Come and learn hear about pending Legislationbefore the 2015 General Assembly, hear from

Legislative leaders, and learn how potentiallegislation will impact your district.

A State Legislative Networking Program forCABE Member School Board, Superintendents

and staff, PTA/PTO members, students and guests.

Presiding Officer Donald Blevins, Resolutions Chair Becky Tyrrell, Vice President for Gov-ernment Relaitons Robert Mitchell, Patrice A. McCarthy, Deputy Director and General Coun-sel, CABE, Robert Rader, Executive Director, CABE, and not pictured CABE President RichardMurray.

Delegate Elaine Whitney (Westport) and CABE VicePresident for Professional Development, spoke onone the the issues before the Assembly.

Delegates voting on the issues before the Assembly.

Delegate Mirna Martinez (New London) spokeon one of the issues before the Assembly.

Delegate Susan Hoffnagle (Winchester) spokeat the Delegate Assembly on one of the issues.

The Eighth Edition is finally here!!

A Practical Guide to Connecticut School Lawby Thomas B. Mooney, Esq., Shipman & Goodwin

The Guide comes with a CD which provides hyperlinks to many cases and statutesand will permit word searches as a supplement to the Index.

The Eighth Edition was substantially rewritten to reflect statutory changes, significant case law developments in stateand federal courts. Some of the numerous legal developments and update are as follows:

• School Safety and Security • Bullying Law • Teacher Evaluation and Support • Teacher Tenure Act• New Requirements for Professional Development • Budget Issues

• Prohibitions on Electronic Notifications of Referenda • Minimum Budget Requirements• FMLA for Paraprofessionals • Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Requirements

• Uniform Regional School Calendars • Excusal • Student Assessments • Pool Safety• Concussion Prevention and Education • Sudden Cardiac Arrest Prevention and Education

• Administration and Storage of Epinephrine • Excused Absences• Student Free Speech • Employee Free Speech

The 8th edition will be available in mid-November from CABE.Order your copy TODAY by going to the CABE website: www.cabe.org/page.cfm?p=749



Book Review:How Google Works

I don’t believe schools should be runlike businesses. The differences in theirmissions, either the education of childrenor the maximization of profit, plus manyother factors, are too great to expecteither to closely resemble the other.

However, public education can learnthings from how businesses operate, evenif the business is unique and has greatresources. When it comes to leadershipof successful companies, there are oftenlessons for board members, superinten-dents and association staff.

How Google Works is not a primer onunderstanding Google products orsoftware. Instead, former CEO EricSchmidt, who is now Goggle’s executivechairman and Jonathan Rosenberg,current advisor to CEO Larry Page,provide some good tips to consider whenhandling various issues that could easilycome forward in a school district, as wellas at this hugely successful softwaredeveloper.

Here are just some of the many lessonsthat I took from the book; I have alsotried to tie some of them to educationalleadership issues (in italics):

• Culture is critical in any organiza-tion. If the culture is not in linewith the mission, the organization isset up for failure. The slogans thatany organization puts forward, mustbe believed by those who are incharge. This is consistent with whatwe learned from the originalLighthouse study: if you say youbelieve all kids can learn, you needto believe it and ensure youractions implement that belief.

• In making quality decisions, “paylevel is intrinsically irrelevant andexperience is valuable only if it isused to frame a winning argument.”

Robert RaderExecutive Director, CABE

Google Authors’RecommendationsHere are some of the authors’

recommendations on how to handleour overflowing email boxes:

1. Respond quickly2. Every word matters and

useless prose doesn’t3. Clean out your inbox con-

stantly4. Use LIFO—Last In, First Out5. Make careful decisions on

who to send emails. [InPatrice McCarthy’s words,“Reply All is not yourfriend.”]

6. Ask yourself why when youdecide to use the bcc feature

7. If you need to yell, do it inperson

8. Make it easy to respond torequests

9. Use keywords so you cansearch for something later

Failure Is An Option!In our culture, especially in govern-

ment, the idea of failing in a project, ser-vice or other activity is anathema. In the“Land of Steady Habits”, failing as seenas the ultimate, well, failure.

In How Google Works and anotherbook on a social media, Things A LittleBird Told Me (by Biz Stone, co-founderof Twitter), failure is seen as an importantand even positive part of attemptinganything worthwhile.

Believe it or not, both Google andTwitter have had much experience withfailure – they have rolled out services thatdid not work or failed to keep theirservices from crashing when they wereneeded.

But, their culture (and resources)enables them to bounce back. We’ve allheard of Thomas Edison speaking aboutinventing the light bulb: “I have notfailed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways thatwon’t work.”

Here’s what I learned about Google’sculture regarding failure:

• In order to transform anything, “youmust learn to fail well. Learn fromyour mistakes: Any failed projectshould yield valuable technical,user, and market insights that helpinform the next effort.” [As BillGates has said, “It’s fine to cele-brate success but it is more impor-tant to heed the lessons of failure.”]

• “Don’t stigmatize the team thatfailed”, others will watch “to see ifthe failed team is punished. Theirfailure shouldn’t be celebrated, butit is a badge of honor of sorts.”

• The role of management “is not tomitigate risks or prevent failures,but to create an environment re-silient enough to take on those risksand tolerate the inevitablemissteps.”

Biz Stone’s book plows some of thesame ground. While discussing buildinga startup company, “in order to succeedspectacularly, you must be ready to failspectacularly”. Failure, in terms of themany outages Twitter had, was “part ofthe path. It was worth the risk. In fact, itwas a critical component of growth.”

Boards and SuperintendentsFor school boards and superintendents,

it is hard to risk failure. Whether it’s anew curriculum pursuant to the CommonCore, a new evaluation system or evenchanging the grade configurations acrossthe district, missteps, whether in com-municating with others, getting the sup-port that you need or in how the new ideawill work, is close to a probability.

Obviously, this must be consideredbefore you launch the new idea. In orderto succeed, you must risk unforeseen andeven unforeseeable events.

This is not only applicable to theactions of the Board Leadership Team, itshould be the perspective of the Teamwhen considering the work of other mem-bers of the district staff. In order to suc-ceed, especially in these times of risingexpectations for all school systems, it isoften necessary for teachers andprincipals to take some risks.

Not only will attempting new teachingmethods or other innovative opportunitiespossibly lead to greater success for yourstudents, it may very well energize yourstaff and help build morale.

Understand that failure will be a partof what occurs. Do not punish those whotry, but fail, because other staff memberswill be watching.

Yes, districts are very different fromstartups. But how you handle failure willsay a lot to your staff and your communityabout what you value.

Take measured risks, always explain-ing why you are doing so and you open upthe possibility of great success.

And, unless you have to, don’t pull theplug too quickly on what appears to befailing.

As Edison said, “Many of life’s fail-ures are people who did not realize howclose they were to success when they gaveup.”


See GOOGLE page 18

There is an obligation to dissent ifsomeone thinks there is somethingwrong with an idea. A multiplicityof viewpoints – a/k/a diversity – isyour best defense against myopia.The “experts” are not always rightand it’s important to keep an openmind and hear all opinions whenmaking a decision.

• The building blocks of organiza-tions should be small teams. Theyare like families... In the end theyusually pull together. This also isapplicable in other systems, like themilitary, where small squadsdevelop strong ties and becomewilling to die for each other and, itis the current “push” in profes-sional development in schooldistricts.

• “The character of a company is thesum of the characters of its people,so if you want high character, youmust set that standard” As TomPeters stated, “there is no suchthing as a minor lapse of integrity.”This is critical for Boards andSuperintendents, since one lapsecan lead to destruction of areputation… or worse.

• Strategic plans are not helpful. Learn as you go and figure it out.And, look five years out and ima-gine all the possibilities. Boards

should have strategic plans, be-cause they help define the focus ofthe school system. As you developyours, you should also be looking atleast five years out, and considerdisruptions (usually quick and un-expected situations that can changean industry, a business or a schooldistrict) and opportunities.

• Hiring is the most important thingcompanies do. It should be peer-based, not hierarchical, with decis-ions made by committees andfocused on bringing the best peopleinto the company, even if theirexperience might not match one ofthe open roles. In a peer-basedhiring process, the emphasis is onpeople, not organization. Hire thebest and there’s a “herd mentality”– other great people will follow...This last point is a critical part ofthe Superintendent’s job and,obviously, the Board selects theSuperintendent.

• Passionate people don’t wear theirpassion, they live it. Its hallmarks: “persistence, grit, seriousness, all-encompassing absorption cannot begauged from a checklist”. Nor is italways synonymous with success. Extracurricular passions can yielddirect benefits. Encourage yourstaff to do more than just do their

jobs. Encourage them to be risk-takers and to try things they believewill make a difference.

• Statistics are sexy and the democra-tization of data means that thosewho can analyze it well will win.“Asking the questions and interpret-ing the answers is as important askill as coming up with the answersthemselves.” No matter your busi-ness, learn how the right data,crunched the right way, will helpyou make better decisions. Work-ing with your superintendent, thisIS the job of school boards!

• A “well-run meeting is a great thing.


2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention HighlightsGeneral Session Speakers • Honorees

General Session Speakers Honorees

2015ConnecticutTeacher ofthe Year

CAPSS announces2015 Superintendent of the Year

Dr. Betty Feser, Superinten-dent, Milford Public Schools,was announced as the 2015CAPSS Superintendent of theYear.

2015Teacher ofthe YearFinalists

Elaine Whitney (Westport),Vice President for Profes-sional Development, CABE,introduced CABE andCAPSS Presidents. CABE President Richard

Murray (Killingly) welcomedeveryone to the 2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention.

CAPSS President Frank Baran(Woodstock) thanked theConvention Committee for alltheir hard work.

NSBA President Anne Byrne.

Joseph Cirasuolo, CAPSS Ex-ecutive Director.

CAPSS 2014 Superintendentof the Year Janet Robinson(Stratford) introduced the2015 CAPSS Superintendentof the Year.

Friday Morning General Ses-sion speaker Pasi Sahlberg.

Connecticut Commissioner ofEducation Stefan Pryor.

Robert Rader, CABE ExecutiveDirector.

Cal Heminway introduced the2015 Teacher of the Year fi-nalists and the Teacher of theYear.

CABE Past President LydiaTedone (Simsbury) announcedthe election results.

Astronaut Rich Mastracchiowas the Friday Night Banquetspeaker.

Saturday Morning KeynoteSpeaker Bill Daggett.

Saturday Luncheon Student Panel: Marcus Lane, Senior, Con-necticut International Baccalaureate Academy, East Hartford;Emily Williams, Senior, Farmington High School; Kevin He, Se-nior, East Lyme High School; and Taylor Schwab, Senior, SuffieldHigh School.

Ginny Snowden from Renais-sance Learning, a PlatinumSponsor for the 2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention.

Two of the 2015Teacher of the YearFinalists: EdwardWhite (New Fairfield);and Juliane Givoni(Redding); received Special Commendation certificate fromCABE.

Cara Quinn (East Hart-ford) 2015 ConnecticutTeacher of the Year, re-ceived a Special Com-mendation certificatefrom CABE.

The third 2015 finalistJustin Scott Taylor(Hartford) and 2014Teacher of the YearJohn Mastroianni re-ceived Special Com-mendation certificatesfrom CABE.


2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention

GENERAL SESSIONPasi Sahlberg:The right things to do

The ConventionFriday morningKeynote Speakerwas Dr. PasiSahlberg, a notedFinnish educatorand scholar. Dr.Sahlberg has along career as aneducation advisorfor the Finnish government and othernations, including the United States.Finland has garnered interest in recentyears, as they have been ranked #1 ineducation by many international stan-dards.

Dr. Sahlberg spoke of the similaritiesand differences of educating youngpeople in Finland and to the rest of theworld; most notably the United States.

He said that Finland has no “magicbullet” – that makes them so successful.He admitted that most innovations inFinnish education originated in the UnitedStates. The difference is that Finland wascourageous enough to do what needed tobe done, where the United States oftenlacks the political will to take the boldsteps needed to improve education.

He encouraged us to look at what wedo well and do more of it.

Some of the differences were attributesto a different culture – women in Finlandhave a higher status and children areexpected to be successful. Children arerequired to learn at least two languagesand most Finns speak four.

Additionally, he advised us not to lettesting drive instruction. In Finland, everyteacher MUST be good. Every childreceives early childhood and preschooleducation.

Four things youwon’t find in Finland1. Unhealthy competition

In Finland the public schools havealmost no competition, there are nocharter or magnet schools and privateschools are virtually non-existent.

2. Standardized teaching and learningToo many teachers teaching from ascript. Creativity and teacher respon-siveness to student learning meanlessons are adjusted on the fly.Individualized learning is important inFinland.

3. Test-based accountabilityThere are no grades and the only testthat matters is given when students are18 years old.

4. Market-like school choicesThe goal is that every child must besuccessful; every teacher must beexcellent and every school mustdeliver an excellent education. Thereare no competing interests.

Several closing comments from Dr.Sahlberg:

• The whole child is the focus of theFinnish schools. Art, music andphysical education are all important.One-third of a child’s school dayrelates to art, music and physicaleducation. In elementary schools,children get 15 minutes of play eachhour.

• The well-being and health of childrenare critical. Thirty-three percent of allstudents are identified with specialneeds, but the emphasis is on preven-tion rather than “repair”.

• “Teaching is not rocket science – it’sharder than that”. We must empowerteachers by redesigning the teachingprofession to focus on the needs of thechildren rather than the needs of theadults.

Dr. Sahlberg ended his presentationwith a quote from Winston Churchill, “You can always count on America todo the right thing; after they’ve triedeverything else”. His belief is that wealready know the right things to do to besuccessful and encouraged us to go forthand do them.

Nicholas CarusoSr. Staff Associate for Field Services, CABE

Rick Mastracchio:A Connecticut Astronautat the CABE/CAPSSConvention

The headlinerof the Fridayevening generalsession of the2014 CABE/CAPSSConvention –Astronaut RickMastracchio –was out of thisworld!

Mastracchio – who has totaled 228days in space across four missions,according to a Convention programprofiling general session speakers – is aproduct of the Constitution State, havinggrown up in Waterbury, and he detailedhow his experience in Connecticut’spublic schools provided a solidfoundation for his future successes.

“I attended Chase Grammar School upto 8th grade and then went to CrosbyHigh School [and graduated in 1978] andI had great teachers the whole time,” hesaid. “We are here to talk abouteducation, so I think I need to mention myteachers because I had a lot of greatteachers growing up.”

Mastracchio noted that he wasfascinated by the science he was taught inelementary school. “A lot of people askme: how did you become an astronaut?How did you get to where you are today?And I always tell them, and this is true,[that] back in fifth and sixth grade, whenmy teachers would talk about science andthe planets and NASA and airplanes and

things like that, it would just capture myattention,” he recalled.

“And it just amazed me that thesethings were going on out there,” he added.“But I never knew I could be an astronaut;no one ever told me I couldn’t dosomething, so I decided I would go aheadand do it, what the heck?”

Before that, though, he got his degreein engineering from the flagship publicuniversity in his home state, theUniversity of Connecticut, which receiveda rowdy cheer from the crowd whenmentioned by Mastracchio (he also hastwo masters degrees from otherinstitutions).

From 1982-87, Mastracchio wasemployed by Hamilton Standard inConnecticut as an engineer in the systemdesign group, according to the conventionprogram; while there, he participated inthe development of high performance,strapped-down inertial measurement unitsand flight control computers.

In 1987, Mastracchio moved down toHouston to work for the Rockwell ShuttleOperations Company at the JohnsonSpace Center, added the program; in1990, he joined NASA as an engineer inthe Flight Crew Operations Directorate.

Six years later, in 1996, Mastracchiowas on the cusp of realizing his dreamwhen he was selected as an astronautcandidate; he started training in August1996.

But his path out of this world –literally – started in Waterbury with thegreat educators he had as a youth. One ofthem was a high school guidancecounselor who reasoned that Mastracchioshould be an engineer since he was “reallygood” at math and liked science.

“I had some great teachers whopointed me in the right direction,” herecalled.

– Chris SeymourReporter, CABE

Bill Daggett:70% of Youngsters NotEligible for Military

Founder andChair of theInternationalCenter forLeadership inEducation Dr. BillDaggett was ourkeynote speakerSaturday morningof the CABE/CAPSS Convention.

In his keynote and a workshop hepresented after the General Session, Dr.Daggett spoke about the struggles of ourstudents. Among his points were thatschool boards associations, both in ourstate and nationally, have become the“voice of reason” at this time of reform.

In regard to the need of our schools toadjust to newer thinking, differentdemographics and other concerns, he said see PROFESSIONAL page 13

that it is so hard to change because the“newest solution becomes the enemy”.This is due to “entrenched interests”.

As proof of the issues that face ourstudents, he noted that nationally 70% ofour youngsters out of high school are noteven eligible for the armed services.Among the major reasons was that theylack diplomas, cannot pass literacy tests,are incarcerated or are obese.

“If they are not even ready for themilitary, what makes anyone think thatthey are ready for 21st Century jobs?” heasked the audience. And, he added, themilitary now requires the same job skillsas 21st Century occupations.

What kind of trends will we see in thefuture in education? Dr. Daggett said thatone of the ones we, as board members,parents and citizens, must betterunderstand is that the Internet will soonbe “anticipatory” in that, because ofartificial intelligence, will be even quickerand more responsive to the needs of users.

He asked, “Are your children onFaceBook?” When many answered “no”,he half-jokingly stated that was because“you’re on it.” But, what many people,especially youngsters, don’t realize is thatwherever you go on the Internet, youleave “footprints”, which is how largecompanies can target you for ads.

He spoke in favor of the CommonCore State Standards and continued todiscuss the issues facing the country andthe State in his workshop.

If anyone would like a copy of hisPowerPoint for either the General Sessionor the workshop, email Karen Wilkins [email protected].


WORKSHOPSNew ProfessionalLearning SystemComing Along

The collaborative process behind thedevelopment of a new professionallearning system for Connecticut’seducators was the focus of one Saturdaymorning workshop at the 2014 CABE/CAPSS Convention.

“Supporting Educator Effectivenessand Student Learning Through a NewVision for Professional Learning inConnecticut” was presented by Directorof Leadership Development for the StateDepartment of Education Sarah Barzee;Division Director for EducationEffectiveness and Professional Learningfrom the State Department of Education(SDE) Talent Office Shannon Marimon;and SDE Talent Office ConsultantKimberly Audet.

Audet touched on the ConnecticutAcademy for Professional Learning,which she said will “build a vision ofprofessional learning.”

She explained, “We have convened alarge group of stakeholders: there are reps

The Berlin Board of Education belivesfocus andalignment arekey. Theboard iscompletelyfocused onstudentachievement.From the start of its meeting when theboard chair states its mission statement, tothe board agenda which practicallyeliminates non-student achievement items,to the use of student presentations toillustrate key student achievementinitiatives to the board’s preparation workwith administrators and teachers onpresentations concerning student achieve-ment. The focus on student achievementis communicated to the staff, not just inwords, but through the continuousbehavior of the board. The connectionsbetween board goals, initiatives andresults are readily evident and ever-present.

The Bethel Board of Education adopteda set of goalsthat enables theschool districtto focus onwhat’s mostimportant –improvingstudent achievement. The board’s goalskeep student growth as the foremostpriority and connects the work of theschools with the vision we hold for ourstudents. The goals are: every child willbe part of an active learning environmentand every teacher will be learner focused;we will develop the strongest professionalteaching force possible; technology willbe a catalyst for the improvement ofteaching and learning, communications,and data management; the appearance,maintenance, and safety of our schoolbuildings will mirror our educationalvalues and the aspirations we hold for ourchildren.

The Bloomfield Board of Educationpolicy-making andoversight isrooted indata-drivendecision-making. TheBoardroutinely views data on student perfor-mance and other aspects of districtfunctions. This is evident at regular,committee and special meetings wheredata is routinely analyzed to determinecourse corrections and/or next steps. The

2014 CABE/CAPSS ConventionCongratulations to the

CABE Board of Distinction Award winners - Level IIWhat makes your board’s leadership especially effective in improving student achievement?

analysis of data helps board membersunderstand how best to support continuedacademic growth and keep aligned withthe four district priorities: holisticaccountability; strengthen curriculum,instruction and assessment; positiveschool climate; and parent and communityengagement.

The Granby Board of Education hasbeenextremelysupportiveof publiceducationbothwithin thestate andthe localcommunity. The Granby school systemand community has benefited from strongand consistent leadership and decision-making over many years. The Boardworks collaboratively and supportivelywith the community and town officials ina non-partisan fashion as strong advocatesfor students and education. Our studentscontinue to excel academically. Recogni-tions include Granby Memorial HighSchool as a high-performing ConnecticutVanguard School, Granby Middle Schoolas a CAS Middle School of the Year andKelly Lane Intermediate School as aFederal Blue Ribbon School.

The Madison Board of Educationfocuses onimprovingstudentlearning asis evi-dencedduring thebudgetdevelop-ment process. The board provides thenecessary support to continually reviewand improve curriculum and the associ-ated professional development to imple-ment the curriculum in the classroom.Budget Assumptions include: implementcurricular and instructional initiativesthrough Professional Development andCurriculum Renewal, maintain quality oftechnology in support of student learningand continue to follow the District’sInstructional Technology Plan, andreview, refine, and/or improve currenteducational programs

The Old Saybrook Board of Educationbelieves that it is especially effective inimproving student achievement due totheir broad-based, teamwork approach toleadership. Given the importance of the

school-homeconnection,we areparticularlyfocused onsecuring andincorporatinginput fromparents and the community. Our strategicplan developed several years ago with a34 member steering committee and over90 individuals contributing to the finalinitiatives. As the strategic initiatives thatwere developed for this plan weredeveloping, seven strategic initiativessubcommittees were formed and addi-tional members of the community, parentsand staff joined in this collaborativework. The initiatives focus on educatingthe whole child to reach his or hergreatest potential.

The Plainville Board of Educationcontinues tomaintain acommitmentto optimiz-ing achieve-ment district-wide. With acollectivefocus on students, teaching, and learning,our board has provided the resources,support and leadership that serve as thefoundation of our success – with anemphasis on continuous improvement ofstudent achievement. Over the last fouryears, Plainville has significantly closedthe gap from about 25% seven years ago,down to about 10% last year. This wasaccomplished not by bringing one studentgroup down to meet the other, but bysimultaneously raising performance inboth groups, for all students. We continueto play a critical role in improving studentachievement – their leadership continuesto drive success and inspire continuousimprovement!

The Simsbury Board of Educationcultivates themind, body,and characterof eachstudent. Weengagestudents witha meaningfuland rigorousacademic foundation so that they cancontribute to a global society withintegrity, compassion, and resilience. Wedeveloped five year goals that representthe next level of work that the staff andadministration will engage in as we striveto improve PreK-12 education inSimsbury. Goals of the board of educationare: student achievement, professional-ism, school culture, communication andresources.

Stratford Board of Education devel-oped district goals with the primary focusbeing on student academic achievement.These goals are reviewed annually to re-evaluate andmakewhateverchanges/adjustmentsthat arenecessary. Tothat end, theboard became invested in data analysis,and revision of existing and implementa-tion of new curricula throughout thedistrict. They require presentations fromall principals on the status of strategies toimprove student achievement. Analysisof data is also used for budgetary consid-erations like staffing levels and in salarynegotiation decisions, course offeringdecisions, class size goals, and facilitiesusage.

Other winners were:


Montville Board of Education

Newington Board of Education

Putnam Board of Education

Wolcott Board of Education


2014 CABE/CAPSS ConventionCongratulations to the

CABE Board Recognition Award winners - Level IWhat makes your board’s leadership especially effective?

The Canterbury Board of Education hasa newsuper-intendenthired inAugust2013 anda newboard ofeducation chair as of November 2013. Wehave worked very closely together andwere able to pass our budget on the firstvote; the prior year was passed on the fifthreferendum. The most important factor isclear communications with the community,presenting and disseminating informationwith transparency.

The Derby Board of Education memberscontinu-ously seekto learnmoreaboutstate anddistrictinitiatives and ensure there is alignmentbetween the district and state. This in-volves scheduling many additional meet-ings to include retreats with the specificfocus to develop more as a board and stayinformed with the latest initiatives ineducation. Board members make sure theyare represented at all school functions bothduring the day and in the evening. Theboard members take ownership of theirrole on the committees and work hard toensure completion of the action steps,improving our schools and following theplan.

The Glastonbury Board of Educationhas aproudtraditionof work-ingcollabor-ativelywith administration and staff, communicat-ing effectively with our community andproviding thorough explanations for criti-cal decisions and changes. Perhaps ourgreatest strength is the unique and inform-ed perspective that is brought forward byeach board member. We recognize that thecommunity expects excellent results andwe are very careful to balance the needs ofour students with the impact on our tax-payers. Through careful planning, excel-lent analysis and exhaustive discussion we

continue to strive to provide the best forour students and educators while em-bracing the many significant changes ineducation.

The Greenwich Board of Educationfeelsthateffectiveboardleader-ship isbasedonachieving consensus through thoroughdiscussion and discourse against polic-ies, district goals and by diligent pre-paration, and cohesive interaction withadministrators, staff, parents, students,town officials and the greater commun-ity. The Greenwich Board of Educationembraces and regularly employs each ofthese actions focusing on its number onepriority, increasing achievement for allstudents.

The Killingly Board of Education andthe super-intendentengage ina collab-erativegoal set-tingretreatwith a facilitator every two years at thebeginning of a new board. Self-evaluation is done each year in June aswell as the superintendent evaluation.Great working relationship and commun-ications with all board members and ad-ministrators. Board and administrationworkshops are new and being utilized.Our board focus eseach meeting on thepoint of student achievement.

The New Britain Board of Educationprovidesnewboardmemberswith anin-houseorienta-tion with support from the administrationand the board of education leadershipteam on issues of protocol, procedure,budget development, policy develop-ment, grievance hearings, expulsion

hearings, agenda setting, committee struc-ture. Board members are encouraged toattend professional development oppor-tunities. They have adopted multi-yeargoals that are assessed annually.

The Shelton Board of Education’sprimarygoal forthe lastyear wasto deve-lop aplan andsecurefunding to implement Full DayKindergarten (FDK) in September 2014.It was an aggressive goal because keepingtaxes low is a core value in Shelton, andmost of our elected officials felt weshould just use the long term savings weexpect from FDK to fund itself. When thebudget and mill rate were set, FDK wasn’tfunded. But because of the groundworkwe’d done with public informationforums, the parent community becamevery vocal, and a week later the Mayorand Aldermen agreed to provide the extrafunding we needed to get FDK in place.We have a strong team what workscollaboratively.

The Vernon Board of Education utilizesa systemof com-mitteesto for-ward thework oftheboard.Committee meetings are held on nightsseparate from the regular board meetings.

Minutes of all the committee meetings aredisseminated to the rest of the board andall committees make recommendations tothe full board for decisions on policy,personnel, budget, technology, curriculumand facilities.

The Wethersfield Board of Educationhasdemon-strated astrongcommit-ment tobi-partisandecision-making which has resulted inpositive outcomes for the district.

Other winners were:

Groton Board of Education

Salem Board of Education

Waterford Board of Education

Shipman & Goodwin Reception

Relaxing and networking at the Shipman & Goodwin sponsored receptionon Friday evening.


Student Performers

Parish Hill High SchoolChamber Choir performed atthe Friday morning GeneralSession.

The Berlin High SchoolJazz Ensemble performedat the Saturday morningGeneral Session.

Students from Two RiversMagnet School performingpercussion on Friday morn-ing.

CABE Secretary/Treasurer John Prins(Branford) talks with theBethany girls in Mathand Science program.

(continued from page 10)from CABE and CAPSS, teacher unions,administrator unions, higher education,RESCS. And the purpose of this is tobuild a vision of professional learning sothat through all these education organiza-tions, when they go out to supporteducators in districts in classrooms, weall understand what professional learningis and what meaningful, valuable profes-sional learning is.”

The Professional Learning AdvisoryCommittee (PLAC) is a subcommittee ofthe Academy, and it features a representa-tive of each stakeholder group thatattended the Academy, said Audet. “ThePLAC convened a few weeks ago todevelop standards,” she said.

Those eight standards for professionallearning include learning communities,leadership, resources, data, learningdesigns, implementation, outcomes andequity.

“We have also developed guidance—things to consider when developing yourprofessional learning system,” saidAudet. Proposed guidance for profes-sional learning includes context, valuesand beliefs, and standards for profes-sional learning. Also in the works is aproposed definition of professionallearning.

“One of the biggest things in the workswe are doing now for professionallearning is really emphasizing the districtand school community and that all ofthese people play a big part in developinga system of professional learning—sodesigning it, implementing it, evaluatingit and supporting it,” added Audet.

Marimon listed several “key factors”of professional learning, including that “Itmust be a comprehensive, sustained andintensive approach” and it “providesopportunity for continuous improve-ment… there is no end, the sky is thelimit in terms of what is possible forlearning and opportunities for growth.”

Audet described professional learningas “continuous professional growth,”adding, “I look at the term professionallearning as reflective of that instead ofprofessional development; professional

development to me means a one stop shopwhere that professional learning isongoing. It is something that is collabora-tive, job-embedded and reflects what theeducator needs at that point in time.”

One of the workshop attendees – ateacher – noted that there are teachers that“want to be islands … they’re verycompetitive and they want to be astandout teacher and it’s very difficult tomake that shift into collaboration.”

Barzee responded by noting “a cultureof collaboration” needs to be cultivatedwithin the new professional learningsystem. “We all have to support all of ourkids,” she said of students. “Not just mykids and your kids.”

CABE’s representative to this Commit-tee is Patrice A. McCarthy.


Wallingford SuccessfullyBuilding Capacity

The impressive community-wideengagement efforts of Wallingfordschools in the face of many recentchanges to the educational landscape werethe focus of Friday afternoon’s 2014CABE/CAPSS Convention workshop,“Building Capacity to SuccessfullyNavigate in a Perfect Storm.”

The “storm” the workshop’s title refersto is the “perfect storm of educationalchange,” as described by the Conventionprogram, which adds Wallingford is“navigating the seas of change throughpartnerships and leadership developmentof all community members.”

Wallingford Superintendent SalvatoreMenzo was among the Wallingfordcontingent that detailed just how theircommunity was effectively buildingcapacity.

“Capacity is so essential,” said Menzo.“Capacity is not just that of our educatorsor our students but also our parents,community, our board members –everyone in the community has to be partof that. The fact is it is basically moving adistrict forward in a way that allowseveryone to feel invested, to feel a part ofthe process, and owning the outcomes,owning the successes, and owning thechallenges.”

John Hastings, a senior at SheehanHigh School, said the Wallingford schoolsystem seeks to “build a collaborativeenvironment – taking stakeholders suchas teachers, principals, students, and evenbusiness owners and trying to collaboratewith those people so we can make thebest decision for everyone.”

Menzo stressed that communicatingwhy you are doing what you are doing isessential. “In order for any district tomove forward, people have to have anunderstanding of why you are doing whatyou are doing and then you can talk abouthow you’re going to do it,” he said.

In reaching out to the community atlarge, including businesses, WallingfordBoard of Education Chairwoman RoxaneMcKay underscored the importance ofasking them the right questions.

“Ask ‘what can we do for you? Whatare your needs? How can we collaborate?What can we offer you guys?’ It is aboutmaking relationships and being investedand being part of a community,” shestressed. “Whoever it is you are trying toengage, learn what they need and howyou can assist them and that breeds greatpartnerships.”

On the topic of partnerships, Menzotouched on a belief system dubbed the“Wallingford 100,” which “strives toachieve 100% community involvementwith 100% student engagement for 100%graduation/success,” according to theWallingford school system website.

“The Wallingford 100 flag flies atevery school, at town hall….we havedecals all over the place,” said Menzo.“The students know that people care.”

Observed Lyman Hall High Schoolteacher Ken Daly, “The success of ourstudents is a community endeavor; it’s notjust a classroom teacher endeavor.”


Workshop Focuseson Civic Synergy

The often complicated – and some-times contentious – relationship betweenschool boards and municipal governmentswas the topic of 2014 CABE/CAPSSConvention workshop “Building CivicSynergy: Working with Municipal

.

Officials to Achieve a Common Goal.”The workshop was presented by

Attorneys Kyle A. McClain and NicholasJ. Grello of Siegel, O’Connor, O’Donnell& Beck.

McClain noted the idea behind “civicsynergy” was for boards of education andschool officials – along with TownCouncil members, Selectmen or othermunicipal officials – “to try to worktogether, which may or may not be aneasy task” and that’s because conflict,which he said was “natural,” can oftenarise – primarily when it comes tofinances. “They hold the purse strings,”said McClain of the municipalities.

As all board members are well aware,a municipal government “can reduce aboard’s budget but can’t get into lineitems; they can say [of the whole budget],‘we think that is unreasonable and we aregoing to reduce that.’”

When it comes to employees, that canget a little complicated too since Board ofEducation employees, at the end of theday, are town employees. “Employmentauthority can be a source of conflict—thetown is the employer because they holdthe money but the Board of Educationdirects employees and their employment,”noted McClain. “The town is the ultimateemployer because they fund the Board ofEducation budget.”

McClain underscored the importanceof Boards of Education and towns/citiesworking together, noting both havenumerous shared goals, including mean-ingful public education; communitysuccess; and the fact they are bothrepresentatives and advocates for thesame stakeholders; and both have limitedresources so working together can lead to“greater efficiencies.”

McClain said that towns and boardscould work together by sharing informa-tion (being transparent and accountable),listening, and including rather thanexcluding. Other avenues include utilizingliaisons, joint open public meetings(annually or more), uniting to supportafterschool programs, working together tosupport unpopular issues, and coordinat-ing rather than directing.

Chris SeymourReporter, CABE

PROFESSIONAL


CABE and Baldwin Media: Partners in Managing Communications

The Media Message

Interview with Astronaut Mastracchio out of this world

CABE recognized school districts forexcellence in educational communica-tions at the CABE/CAPSS Convention.Members of the CABE Board of Direc-tors and Staff will present the Awards tothe winning boards at a meeting in theirdistrict after the first of the year. Entrieswere judged by Susan Saks of SusanSaks Voiceovers.

Award WinnersGoing Green

Redding Public SchoolsGarden ClubWolcott Public Schools“It’s Elementary – Use Less “Stamford Public SchoolsScofield Magnet Middle SchoolLED Retrofit & Behavioral Awareness

NewsletterSalem Public SchoolsSalem School District News LettersSimsbury Public SchoolsHenry James Memorial SchoolNewsletterWest Hartford Public SchoolsBugbee Buzz (2/4/2014) (4/8/2014)

Annual ReportEASTCONNAnnual Board Update 2013-2014ACESInnovations 2012-2013 Annual ReportCREC2012-2013 CREC Annual Report

District BudgetRegion 18 Public Schools2014-2015 Budget BookWolcott Public SchoolsWolcott Public Schools 2014-2015Budget ProposalFairfield Public SchoolsProposed Budget 7/1/14 – 6/30/15

Parent/Student HandbookWoodbridge Public SchoolsBeecher Road School Parent &Student Handbook 2014-2015Newington Public SchoolsStudent Parent HandbookWest Hartford Public SchoolsWeekly Principal Newsletter

Course Selection GuideEASTCONNPrograms & Services 2014-2015Newington Public SchoolsStudent Parent HandbookCREC2013-2014 CREC Programs &Services Catalog

CalendarC.E.S2014-2015 Member District CalendarRegion 5 Public Schools2014-2015 Amity District CalendarWallingford Public SchoolsDistrict Calendar

Special ProjectBethany Public SchoolsWelcome Back Packet 2013-2014Cheshire Public SchoolsDigital Photo Frames for DisplayCRECCREC Magnet School Catalog

Special Project (AV)Redding Public SchoolsTaking Care of Others at John ReadMiddle School - The Kindness ProjectACESWe Are the ChampionsCRECCommercial (Give Your Child A HeadStart)

Computer Generated ProjectsWoodbridge Public SchoolsWoodbridge 2013 CMT ResultsPresent to Board of EducationNew Fairfield Public SchoolsSchool SafetyWest Hartford Public SchoolsThe Hoot

Web SitesRegion 6 Public SchoolsWomogo Regional H.S. WebsiteBerlin Public SchoolsBerlin Public High School WebsiteManchester Public SchoolsMHS Redline Student News

Honorable Mention Winners:Bethany Public SchoolsBethel Public SchoolsCRECCheshire Public SchoolsColchester Public SchoolsEASTCONNEast Hartford Public SchoolsFairfield Public SchoolsGlastonbury Public SchoolsGriswold Public SchoolsLEARNMadison Public SchoolsManchester Public SchoolsMeriden Public SchoolsNew Fairfield Public SchoolsNewington Public SchoolsNew Milford Public SchoolsNew London Public SchoolsPlainville Public SchoolsPutnam Public SchoolsRedding Public SchoolsRegion 5 Public SchoolsRegion 6 Public SchoolsRegion 12 Public SchoolsRegion 18 Public SchoolsRidgefield Public SchoolsSalem Public SchoolsSimsbury Public SchoolsStamford Public SchoolsWallingford Public SchoolsWest Hartford Public SchoolsWolcott Public SchoolsWoodbridge Public Schools

Congratulations to the school districts which won CABE’s2014 Award of Excellence for Educational Communications

As many of you know the CABE/CAPSS Convention was held in Novem-ber at the Mystic Marriott. This yearthere seemed to be a record crowd offolks all with one common interest:support and passion for public educationin Connecticut.

Those who attended also got a specialtreat as many had the opportunity to hearWaterbury native, Rick Mastracchio,speak at Friday night’s banquet. Notonly is Rick a NASA Astronaut, he isalso a graduate of Crosby High Schoolin Waterbury, Connecticut and a hugepro-ponent of public education.

I had the opportunity to interview Mr.Mastracchio on camera, prior to his key-note address for a video project thatCABE is working on called; “Stand Upfor Public Education.”

This is a campaign started by theNational School Boards Association andit has taken off. The goal is to get realpeople with real, incredible stories as

they relate to how publiceducation got them towhere they are today.That was the story ofAstronaut RickMastracchio.

Before the interviewstarted, I asked Rick if heever had any mediatraining and his answerwas, “Another Astronautand I reported live forhours and hours while inspace to hundreds ofmillions of people all overthe world. Does that count?”

Mr. Mastracchio has logged nearly 40days in space and is a veteran of threespace flights. The most recent was inFebruary of this year as part of Expedition38, which included research projectsfocusing on technology demonstration,cellular and plant biology, human healthmanagement for long duration space

travel and maturing criticalsystems that currentlysupport the InternationalSpace Station. I myselfam now a bit intimidated.I am interviewing a REALAstronaut!

Mr. Mastracchio was areal gentleman. Sogracious and unassumingand so proud of where hecame from. In the inter-view he referred to hisdays at Crosby HighSchool in Waterbury, CT,

where he said it was his science and mathteachers who inspired him to one daybecome an Astronaut.

A graduate of Crosby High School’sclass of 1978, he then went on to receivea Bachelor of Science Degree in Electri-cal Engineering/Computer Science fromthe University of Connecticut in 1982, aswell as several other degrees after that.

This wasn’t a man who neededmedia training to speak in “sound-bites” because the message that he hadabout the public education that helpedhim prepare for where he is today camefrom his heart. Also, close to his heart, he spoke ofhis wife of many years and how theymet in 8th grade in Waterbury, Con-necticut and how proud he is of theirthree grown children.

What a humble and accomplishedman. In most cases, reporters aren’tsupposed to share their personalopinions, but in this case I had to, justin case you didn’t get the opportunityto meet this amazing man.

I hope that you will all be on thelook-out for the interview that I record-ed, which CABE will be putting ontheir website and on YouTube in thevery near future, so that you can see foryourself why we should all be proud ofthis man and of so many great “prod-ucts” of Connecticut’s public schoolsystem.

from Ann Baldwin, Baldwin Media Marketing, LLC


CABE: working for YOUIndividualized Workshops • Professional Development Opportunities

Legal Services • Policy Services • Representing You Statewide and Nationally

Below are the highlights of activities thatthe CABE staff has undertaken on yourbehalf over the last month. We did this:

➤ By representing Connecti-cut school boards on thestate or national level:

• Attended Connecticut Bar AssociationLabor and Employment Law Execu-tive Committee meeting.

• Attended Professional LearningAdvisory Committee meeting.

• Attended State Board of Educationmeeting.

• Discussed the upcoming LegislativeSession on WTIC.

• Attended Connecticut Association ofNonprofits Annual Conference.

• Attended CREC Legislative Commit-tee meeting.

• Attended CAPSS TechnologyCommittee meeting.

• Participated in the ConnecticutCoalition for Public EducationMeeting, held at the A.I. PrinceTechnical High School. The groupspoke with Senator Don Williams onSmart Start, the early childhoodeducation initiative and other issues.

• Hosted a meeting of theWhatWillOurChildrenLose Coalitionmeeting. We are preparing for theLegislative Session.

• Hosted a meeting of the Big 6Partnership on items of concern as weprepare for the upcoming LegislativeSession.

• Attended Governor Malloy’s pressconference on increasing fundingdistricts for safety and security.

• Participated in NSBA Ad HocCommittee on The Future of SchoolBoards teleconference.

➤ By providing opportunitiesfor members to learn how

to better govern theirdistricts:

• Had conference call with Fridaymorning General Session speaker,Pasi Sahlberg.

• Planned, implemented, and presentedsuccessfully NSBA NortheastConference.

• Planned and implemented CharterSchool Board training.

• Planned and implemented highlysuccessful CABE/CAPSS Conven-tion.

• Provided effective meetings work-shop with the Windsor Board ofEducation.

• Provided roles and responsibilitiesworkshop for the Canterbury andChaplin Boards of Education.

• Provided a board evaluation work-shop for the Stafford Board ofEducation.

• Continued working with CAPSS onupdating our Joint GovernanceStatement and Team Assessmentdocument.

• Provided policy information to 33districts, two nonprofit educationalorganizations, a graduate student andthe State Department of Educationthrough 55 answered requests forinformation or sample policies, on 48topics. Further, districts continue toaccess CABE’s online Core PolicyReference Manual and/or onlinemanuals posted by CABE for policysamples. The topics of greatestinterest pertain to: student atten-dance, student health, and technologyissues; graduation requirements andstudent discipline.

➤ By providing servicesto meet members needs:

• Met with Chairman Chris Pattaciniand Superintendent Matthew Gearyfrom the Manchester Board of

Education on CABE services,activities and programs.

• Met with Hartford SuperintendentBeth Narvaez and WinchesterSuperintendent Ann Watson onCABE services, activities andprograms.

• Met with New Canaan Chair HazelHobbes and Superintendent BryanLuizzi on CABE services, activitiesand programs.

• Completed the audit of theBloomfield Policy Manual. In theprocess of auditing the HamdenPolicy Manual. Entered into anagreement to do an audit of thePortland Policy Manual.

• Revised sample policies pertainingto smoke-free environment, foodsales, nutrition program, vendingmachines reporting of child abuse,attendance, health assessments, andattendance.

• The online CORE Manual was againupdated.

➤ By ensuring membersreceive the most up-to-date communications:

• As part of the development of newpolicy manuals utilizing the CustomPolicy Service, materials wereprepared for Avon, Cromwell,Griswold, Ellington, Newtown,North Haven, and WethersfieldBoards of Education.

• Entered into an agreement to revisesections of the Branford PolicyManual as a follow-up of the audit.

• Processed materials for NewFairfield, New Hartford andMarlborough Boards of Education

as part of the Custom UpdateService.

➤ By helping school boardsto increase studentachievement

• Provided Lighthouse training for theVernon Board of Education.

• Provided district goal setting work-shop for the Wethersfield Board ofEducation.

• Facilitated a board retreat for theRegion 13 Board of Education.

• Sent out two issues of Policy High-lights via email listserv coveringtopics that affect student achieve-ment. This included the observationof religious holidays in the schools,the role of paraprofessionals, the useof tablets in instruction, dropouts,and homework.

➤ By promotingpublic education:

• Attended Connecticut Council onEducation Reform workshop onCommunicating the Common Core.

• Hosted and presented a workshop onwhat Charter School Boards need toknow about their roles and responsi-bilities. This was done at the requestof the State Department of Education.

• Hosted a meeting of PreK-3 Leaders,discussing how best to strengthenearly childhood education in theState.

• Toured the Achievement FirstHartford Academy.

• Met with the Hartford PolicyCommittee.

• Attended and presented at the CABE/CAPSS Convention.

The update by LEAD Connecticut tothe State Board of Education (SBE) at itsmonthly meeting precipitated a lengthydiscussion, as they are doing much toassist school leaders in Connecticut.

LEAD CT is coordinated by the Con-necticut Center for School Change, andprovides leadership training and coachingfor aspiring and advancing leaders. TheConnecticut Association of Public SchoolSuperintendents (CAPSS) along withUCONN’s Neag School of Educationhave programs they are sponsoring forturnaround district leaders and forcoaching new Superintendents. It is alsounderwriting the updating of the CABE/CAPSS Governance Statement andTeacher Assessment document.

The Leadership Competency Frame-work, intended to focus specifically onthe competencies found to be essential toimprove performance in Alliance schooldistricts really gets at the attributes andactions of effective leadership. CABE’sPatrice McCarthy and Robert Raderhave been active participants in assistingwith this work.

As part of the update on minorityrecruitment, Dr. Sarah Barzee, StateDepartment of Education’s Chief Talent

Officer said 31 states, including Connecti-cut, have policies on recruitment. Fromthe SDE’s executive summary, is astatement from the U.S. Department ofEducation predicting earlier this year that“this fall, a majority of public schoolstudents will be children of color.”

However, the summary continues, “ourcountry’s workforce remains remarkablystagnant, with little change in diversityrates over the past decade.”

Discussion lead to strategies toincrease the racial, cultural, ethnic andlinguistic diversity of the educatorworkforce. By encouraging students tobecome teachers, creating a pipeline toenroll students in teaching programs, andfunding scholarships.

Tamara Gloster of CREC, spoke aboutthe Minority Teacher RecruitmentCommittee’s workshop to assist in passingthe Praxis exam. About a third of thosewho attended the workshop and reporttheir scores have passed all three Praxisexams.

In the end, it was Charlene RussellTucker, Chief Operating Officer at SDEwho remarked, “You can recruit but canyou retain?” This is a part of a discussionat the legislative subcommittee level ofthe State Board of Education.

In reviewing the draft social studies

Discussions and actions at theState Board of Education meeting

Available from theCABE Bookstore!

to order the FOIA book go to the CABE Online

Bookstore at www.cabe.org/page.cfm?p=749

Understanding theConnecticut

Freedom of Information Actand

Access to Public Meetingsand Records - Fourth Edition

Written by:

Mark J. Sommaruga, Esq.Pullman & Comley, LLC

See STATE BOARD page 19

Sheila McKay, Sr. Staff Associatefor Government Relations, CABE


Vincent A. Mustaro, Senior Staff Associate for Policy Service, CABE

The Policy Corner CABE-MeetingCABE-Meeting is a user-friendly

online service offered by CABEspecifically for school boards. Userscan eliminate unnecessary paperwork,increase efficiency and reduce costswhile enabling board members to utilizethe latest in cutting edge technology.Using CABE-Meeting, the MeetingManager can create and electronicmeeting from developing the agenda tocreating the minutes and everything inbetween.

When the meeting is ready, theMeeting Manager emails your boardmembers and designated administratorsto let them know they can log in. Userscan login from the comfort of theirhomes or work place. With a mouseclick, agenda and related documents areopen and ready for viewing. Using thesearch features, administrators andboard members can easily locateinformation from previous boardmeetings. No more time consuming,tedious searches through mounds ofpaper!

What Else DoesCABE-Meeting Offer?• Secure login access for board and

district staff• Password protected access for

certain features and audiences• Access from any location with

Internet access• Search archived agenda and meeting

related items in a flash.• Ability to download and print

attachments• Option to provide a public link to

board meeting information• Calendar for tracking events of

district interest

Your CABE-MeetingSubscription Provides:• Access to CABE-Meeting• Initial and ongoing training• Support and maintenance• Upgrades to the service

CABE MemberSubscription Information:Initial Subscription Fee – $3,000Annual Maintenance Fee –$1,500

If you have an interestin this service,

contact Lisa Steimerat 860-571-7446

or [email protected].

Few subjects are more likely to cause aheated debate than whether controversialissues should be taught in public schools.Curricular content that deviates from thenorm, or is considered to be “too contro-versial” will often result in a firestorm ofcriticism for a teacher with the temerity tochallenge majority opinion or questionprevailing positions or values.

Yet, there is general agreement that theteaching of critical thinking skills instudents is one of the curriculum’simportant goals. One of the best ways ofachieving this goal is to allow students toaddress controversial issues, teachingthem how to analyze the evidence of bothsides. Young people have strong opinionsabout controversial issues.

In an age of mass media and electroniccommunication, today’s students areregularly exposed to conflicts andcontroversies. They are alert to informa-tion and images they see in the media.However, information about teachingcontroversial topics in public schools is ofgrowing importance because of increasedpublic concern.

Clearly, students require more than“the basics.” They need to be equipped tobecome discerning citizens. As a result,teachers and administrators need to have aguarantee that they may venture into areasof discourse which require criticalthinking, and which by their nature, willevoke controversy.

Such a guarantee can be achieved byteaching and adhering to a procedure thatensures objectivity and the balancedpresentation of multiple perspectives andthrough appropriate policy directionwhich protects students from being“intellectually assaulted, emotionallyaccosted or spiritually molested.”

Courts usually leave to the schoolsissues pertaining to the curriculum.However, the courts will intervene whennecessary to protect the legal rights ofparents and students. Curriculum-relatedlawsuits usually result from disputes overcontent. While courts usually defer toschools, a board’s curricular discretion,either to require content or to censor it, islimited.

Curriculum DecisionsFollowing is a listing of what schools

are and are not permitted to do, basedupon judicial decisions over time pertain-ing to controversial issues in the curricu-lum.

Schools may:1. Require students to learn controver-

sial content, even if such contentmay offend the ideological orreligious sensibilities of some in thecommunity.

2. Teach about religion.3. Require values or character educa-

tion. The fact that some secularvalues parallel religious tenets doesnot taint a program as establishingreligion.

4. Hold or require activities based oncultural traditions or fantasy, aslong as they do not border onreligious ritual.

5. Teach about religious holidays.6. Include religious music in a school

music group’s repertoire.7. Restrict content based on legitimate

pedagogical grounds. These includeage appropriateness, professionalacceptance, consistency withgeneral educational objectives, orcurrency.

8. Require a teacher to teach contenthe/she finds objectionable.

9. Discipline a teacher for violatingcurricular guidelines or commonsense propriety. Academic freedomdoes not permit a teacher to show aR-rated movie to young students or bein violation of district policy.

Schools may not:1. Make arbitrary curriculum decisions

without rational reasons. A decisionmust be rationally related to alegitimate governmental purpose.

2. Ban academic content solelybecause it’s controversial oroffensive to the religious or familyvalues of some community mem-bers. Courts have held that studentshave certain legal rights to receiveinformation, even if controversial.

3. Engage in religious instruction.Promoting or denigrating religion isunconstitutional.

4. Fail to address abuses of discretion byteachers.

5. Teach religion in the guise of othersubjects.

6. Hold activities, that border onreligious practice.

7. Hold religious celebrations.

A school district should consider a policywhich includes an “opt-out” procedure forstudents to be excused from certainclasses. Such a policy is not required, butit can help ease controversies. Legally, anopt-out makes it more likely that a courtwill reject a challenge to an assignment.

The rules for making textbook deci-sions are similar to those for curriculardecisions.

Schools may:1. Require assignment of materials even

if some parents object to some of theideas in them.

2. Forbid use of textbooks or materialsin class because of vulgarity orgraphic treatment of sexual matters,even where material has great literaryvalue.

3. Rely on motion picture ratings todetermine the appropriateness offilms for students.

4. Use religious materials in class toteach about religion and culture.

Schools may not:1. Remove instructional materials

from the curriculum based solely on

religious and ideological beliefs ofparents/guardians and communitymembers.

The No Child Left Behind Act(NCLB) requires districts receivingfederal funds to adopt a local policygiving a parent the right to inspect anyinstructional material, regardless offormat, used as part of the educationalcurriculum. Parents must be notified, atleast annually at the beginning of theschool year, of the existence of the policy.Policy #6162.51, Surveys of Students(Student Privacy) addresses this issue.

Library MaterialsCourts usually apply a stricter standard

of review to decisions to restrict studentaccess to library/media materials than toclassroom materials. The rights ofstudents to receive information cannot beinfringed just because ideas are contro-versial or may be distasteful to some.

A school board, however, can excludematerials from the library if they are not“educationally suitable” or are “perva-sively vulgar.” It is recommended thatboards establish a standard procedure tohandle challenges to library materials.

Source: In part based upon an articlewritten by Thomas Hutton, NSBA StaffAttorney, appearing in Inside SchoolLaw, winter 2003 edition.

Policy ImplicationsControversial issues inevitably

become part of the education programand may provide students withopportunities for free expression,exchange of ideas and viewpoints andfoster critical thinking. Controversialissues, materials and topics, appropri-ate to the grade level, may be intro-duced in the classroom in accordancewith the policies of the board and theprocedures established by the superin-tendent of schools.

The policies listed below relate to theinformation contained in this discus-sion of controversial issues andsamples are available from the CABEPolicy Service.

1. Policy #1312 / Public Complaints2. Policy #4118.21 / Academic

Freedom3. Policy #6162.51 / Surveys of

Students (Student Privacy)4. Policy #6144 / Controversial

Issues5. Policy #6144.1 / Exemption from

Instruction6. Policy #6144.3 / Controversial

Speakers7. Policy #6160 / Educational

Resources and Material8. Policy #6161 / Equipment, Books

and Materials9. Policy #6161.1 / Evaluation/

Selection of Instructional Materi-als

10. Policy #6177 / Use of Commer-cially Produced Video Recordings


Some cities and towns in Connecti-cut limit the terms of office for boardof education members and other elect-ed officials. This may come in the formof limiting a board member to two con-secutive terms. At least one town inConnecticut limits board of educationmembership to one four-year term.

For boards of education, term limitscan be particularly troublesome. It cantake the majority of a board member’sfirst term to become fully fluent in thevarious content areas needed to partici-pate effectively on a board of educa-tion.

Ultimately, term limits can impair aboard’s ability to cultivate strong lead-ership and develop expertise amongthe membership, two qualities that arevital for effective boards.

Defenders of term limits claim thatthey ensure the presence of new candi-dates with fresh ideas and less stagna-tion, entrenchment or possible abuse ofpower.

Meanwhile, opponents of termlimits point out that that the electoralprocess can accomplish the same goalsbecause voters are always free to electa candidate who represents a new per-pective or vote any incumbent boardmembers out of office.

People may assume that because thePresident of the United States is limit-ed to two terms, such term limits couldbe applied to any elected position, in-cluding municipal officials.

However, the presidential term limitwas established by the Twenty-SecondAmendment to the U.S. Constitutionand only applies to the President. Bycontrast, any board of education termlimits are created by municipal ordin-ance or charter provisions.

The validity of such municipal lawsrests upon the authority of the city ortown to create them. The fact that suchauthority is limited provides a meansthrough which board of education termlimits can be legally challenged.

Municipalities are creatures of thestate and have no inherent legislativepowers. Their powers are limited tothose that are expressly granted bystate statute or necessary to fulfillmunicipal duties. The state legislaturehas not explicitly given municipalitiesthe authority to establish term limits.

The relevant statutes pertaining tothe election of board of educationmembers only give municipalities thepower to choose a different length ofthe term of office and the method ofrotation of members as well as someoptions regarding the number of boardmembers.

There is also statutory language that

permits municipalities to determine themethod of election and mode by whichofficers are voted for, but neither ofthese laws provides a basis for estab-lishing term limits.

Fundamentally, term limits establishqualifications for board of educationcandidates.

While there have been no cases inConnecticut that directly analyze atown’s ability to set term limits for itsmunicipal officers, there are a numberof cases that reject a town’s attempt toestablish qualifications for candidatesfor town office.

For example, in Buonocore v. Townof Branford, the Connecticut SupremeCourt invalidated a charter provisionprohibiting unclassified state employ-ees from holding elective office. Indoing so, the Court concluded that al-though the Town was empowered bystatute to establish the “method ofelection,” this related to proceduralmatters (date, place, voting districts)and did not extend to candidate qualifi-cations.

With regard to the general power topromote good government, the Courtstated that although towns “obviouslyhave a strong interest in the qualifica-tions of candidates for local office,‘good government’ cannot be read sobroadly as to necessitate the grant ofpower to municipalities to determinecandidate qualifications.”

This case, and others like it, estab-lishes a strong precedent for invalidat-ing any municipality’s attempt to estab-lish qualifications for candidates, in-cluding qualifications such as termlimits.

Term limits might also be chal-lenged on the basis of the unique natureof school districts – that they are agentsof the state as well as the municipality.Under the right circumstances, it maybe possible to show that term limitshave such a negative impact that theyimpair the efficient and proper opera-tion of the educational system.

The bottom line is this: if boards ofeducation, candidates for municipaloffice or political parties have a strongdesire to abolish term limits, they arenot limited solely to the legislative pro-cess. Rather, such opponents can ap-peal to the Connecticut courts to chal-lenge the validity of term limits.

Susan L. Scott is an attorney in thelaw firm of Pullman & Comley, LLC.which represents numerous Connecti-cut boards of education. More articlesabout issues pertaining to school dis-tricts can be found on the firm’s blog,Education Law Notes, at:schoollaw.pullcomblog.com.

Susan L. Scott, Esq.Pullman & Comley, LLC

Board Member Term Limits:Are They Legal?

C.E.S. opens expansionof School ReadinessPre-School Program

Cooperative Educational Services(C.E.S.), the Regional Education ServiceCenter (RESC) of lower Fairfield Countyhas been running a high quality SchoolReadiness (Pre-School) Program exclu-sively for children who reside in the Cityof Bridgeport for the past eight yearsunder the State Department of Educa-tion’s School Readiness Grant Program.

The enrollment capacity has beenlimited to 54 students. This C.E.S.program has consistently had an annual“wait list” with more than 100 students.

As an investment in the future of ouryouth, C.E.S. decided to expand itsSchool Readiness facility to accommodatean additional 36 students to bring itsenrollment capacity up to 90.

Although there was no State grant forthis construction nor any guarantee forState sponsored slots, C.E.S. decided tomove ahead with the construction projectwith the notion that “if we build it, theywill come.”

The leadership of C.E.S. was thrilledto learn in the spring that additional slotswere awarded to the City of Bridgeportwho, in turn, has designated 36 of thoseslots for the expanded School Readinessprogram facility at C.E.S. at 40 LindemanDrive in Trumbull, CT.

The construction was completed intime for the opening of the 2014-15school year. A ribbon cutting dedicationof this School Readiness building andprogram expansion was held on Thursday,October 2 at 3:15 p.m. at 40 LindemanDrive in Trumbull, CT.

This expansion is part of a multi-faceted Early Childhood initiative byC.E.S. to improve the quality of EarlyChildhood Education as a means to helpclose Connecticut’s achievement gap.

In addition to the goal (1) “to expandpre-school programs and services at

C.E.S.”, the initiative also encompassesthe goals to (2) “provide model pre-school programs throughout the region”and to (3) “collaborate with area highereducation institutions and trainingprograms.” Former Commissioner ofEducation George Coleman has served asthe lead consultant on this initiativeworking closely with C.E.S. ExecutiveDirector Dr. Evan Pitkoff, AssociateExecutive Director Christopher LaBelle,and Professional Development ServicesDirector Esther Bobowick.

The initiative aims to serve as a modelprogram to be exported to other schooldistricts in the region and throughout theState of Connecticut, strengthen thequality of University training provided topre-school personnel, and provide highcaliber professional development topracticing pre-school personnel.

The new construction includes not onlyadditional classrooms, but also mirroredone-way window booths for professionalsand those being trained as pre-schoolpersonnel to observe high quality earlychildhood instructional practices.

As part of this initiative, C.E.S. inpartnership with Yale University, wasrecently awarded a U.S. Department ofEducation’s Institute of EducationalSciences (IES) grant to develop an EarlyChildhood Education Research Allianceto study effective practices in EarlyChildhood Education.

This research alliance will allowschool districts in lower Fairfield County(Bridgeport, C.E.S., Norwalk andStamford) to collaborate with the scien-tific community in establishing re-searched-based responses that informs ourefforts to develop successful preschoollearners and significantly contribute toclosing achievement gaps among learnersin the region.

Evan PitkoffExecutive Director, C.E.S.


How Google Works(continued from page 8) It’s the most efficient way to present

data and opinions and debateissues” and to make decisions. “Abadly-run meeting... is a giant,demoralizing time waster.” This

Bridgeport(continued from page 4)A True Collaborative Partner –Where We Are Now?

In working partnership with districtand state goals, this year, with completesupport of Superintendent Rabinowitz,Bridgeport maintains a model TotalLearning PK-4 School and has expandedthe Music Together portion of the init-iative to five family resource centers andthree additional PK classrooms.

The BTLI has received national atten-tion through the introduction of H.R.3983. The Total Learning Act, a congres-sional bill to support the Bridgeportmodel and make it available for replica-tion throughout the city, as well as otherschool systems throughout Connecticutand the nation.

For further information: www.abcd.org. To find out more or come see theBTLI in action, please contact AllisonLogan at [email protected] or 203-366-8241, Ext. 237.(Footnotes)1 State of the Child in Bridgeport, 2012 Report –Bridgeport Child Advocacy Coalition

Danbury(continued from page 4)Danbury students as well as students fromarea towns through a lottery system. With atheme of International and Global Studies,the school’s 412 students in kindergartenthrough fifth grade are also taught a foreignlanguage.

The organization also recognized theoverwhelming support of parents, staffand students who made numerousreferences to the school’s climate as“safe, supportive, exciting andinnovative.”

“We feel so fortunate to have beenselected as the CAS Elementary School ofthe Year,” said Nitowski. “There are somany great schools here in Connecticut,and we share this recognition with all ofthem. The entire process has been a greatexperience from initially, working withthe staff to complete the application andthen preparing for the site visit. Later, theability to truly work as a school commun-ity where students, parents, staff, andadministration came together for a com-mon goal was a ‘winning’ experience initself. To be recognized by CAS wasbeyond what we had expected.”

Connecticut(continued from page 1)

We welcome individual schooldistricts videotaping and getting usablepositive quotes for some of the high-profile “stars” in their communities, whogot their start in the public schools!

It is better to leadfrom behind and toput others in front,

especially when youcelebrate victorywhen nice things

occur. You take thefront line when there

is danger. Thenpeople will appreci-ate your leadership.

– Nelson Mandela

• Forces of disruption and technologyare too powerful for a bury-your-head-in-the-sand approach. It willend tragically. The traditionalist willeventually fail or become irrelevant.This is true in the business worldand in education, too. We mustaddress the issues, such as publicschool choice. We cannot bury ourheads in the sand.

How Google Works is an absorbingstudy of a fascinating, pervasive and verywealthy company. I recommend it toanyone interested in leadership, organiza-tional management and in effectivelyserving our young “customers”.

should be self-evident to all BoardMembers and Superintendents!

• Overcommunicate. If something isimportant, say it over and over andin different media. Questions tothink about when over-communicat-ing:1. Does the communication

reinforce core themes that youwant everyone to get? Corethemes should be only a few,related to your mission, values,strategy and industry.

2. Is the communication effective?It may have to be varied toregrab or grab attention.

3. Is the communication interesting,fun, or inspirational?

4. Is the communication authentic?5. Is the communication going to

the right people? (The ones whowill find it useful.)

6. Are you using the right media?7. Tell the truth, be humble and

bank goodwill for a rainy day ifyou have to communicate badnews.

• Interviews with the press “shouldn’tbe an exercise in regurgitating blandmarketing messages, it should be aconversation with insight.” A goodinterview consists of listening to thequestions and answering intelli-gently, “with insights and stories,while reinforcing the message, butnot parroting it”. We have seenboth and the latter is and looks tooscripted.


(continued from page 1)East Hartford Superintendent Nathan

D. Quesnel was a co-facilitator of thetaskforce and noted that he also found itto be a valuable experience. [Area 2Director Donald Harris (Bloomfield) andState Relations Chair Elizabeth Brown(Waterbury) represented CABE on theTask Force.]

“The Common Core Task Force was agreat opportunity to work together withteachers, parents, administrators andboard members to do what Connecticuteducators do best – problem solve andfind solutions,” he said. “We are all ex-tremely proud of both the product wedelivered and most importantly the pro-cess we went through to get to this results.

We believe the CCTF Report is a clear16-page document that provides a tightand extremely relevant road map forConnecticut as we move forward withimplementations.

I am extremely appreciative for theefforts of my fellow taskforce members,State Department and Governor’s officefor the opportunity to participate in thislearning experience.”

Some of the takeaways for the task-force centered on the importance of com-munication and exceptional leadership,said the Chief Academic Officer. “Com-munity matters tremendously and helpingthe community understand big changes in

education is a critical role,” she said.Districts that had a “well-articulated

communications plan” seemed to have anedge. “The few districts that seemed toknow how to do that seemed to be dealingwith a lot less pushback,” said Roberge-Wentzell.

Another “big learning” of the taskforcewas that “leadership matters tremendous-ly,” said Roberge-Wentzell.

With that in mind, the task force vetteddistricts where the superintendent’s lead-ership style was “very inclusive of thecommunity,” and these included Walling-ford and Norwich.

“Both Wallingford and Norwich re-ported planned programs that brought thecommunity in, and in Wallingford, theybrought in the senior citizen community,and I really hadn’t heard of a superinten-dent intentionally cultivating a relation-ship with the seniors before,” saidRoberge-Wentzell. “They definitely hadall the stakeholders engaged.”

Another taskforce takeaway was thatplanning is of utmost importance. “Andthat was one of the other big learnings ofthe taskforce: having a plan matters tre-mendously and some of the districts westudied, some were smaller and somewere large, but we were able to really seethat planning was a critical component ofteachers feeling supported,” saidRoberge-Wentzell.

Back up in Windsor, Freeman said shehas found an abundance of CCSS re-sources as well as support from otherteachers online. “I found a lot of online

resources – webinars, blogs and articles –as well as books that helped me to‘unpack’ the standards and realize whatthey should look like in my classroom,”she said.

“One of the most significant advan-tages of the Common Core State Stan-dards has been that teachers all across thiscountry have been able to share resources,lesson plans and best practices – we havea national professional learning commu-nity.”

Freeman compared the CCSS to a“roadmap,” explaining, “The standardsare a roadmap from Kindergarten toGrade 8, laying out the essential skills andconcepts with a clear coherence bothwithin a grade and between grades.”

Freeman added of students learningfrom the CCSS, “They’ll be better prepar-ed to make a mid-trip adjustment, willappreciate the route more, will arrive witha greater understanding of what it took toget there, and be better able to take a dif-ferent journey on their own the next time.

This is 21st Century learning, and thisis what the Common Core Standards areall about.”

Common Coreimplementationgoing well

(continued from page 15)framework, Dr. Dianna Roberge-Wentzel,SDE’s Chief Academic Officer, mention-ed the focus on college, career and civiclife (C3). One of the guiding questions inpreparing the document was: How we canbest engage our students?

State Board of Education

Stephen Armstrong, a SDE SocialStudies Education Consultant, made apoint of saying, “social studies should bemore than history, its economics, its civicsand geography.”

Further explanation revealed there willnot be as many teacher-directed lessons,and there will be compelling questionswith possibly no right or wrong answer.SDE reached out to the Connecticutmuseum community, minority organiza-tions, and outside of Connecticut forassistance and to also review the frame-work.

Budget reduction and expansion sub-missions to the Office of Policy and Man-agement were also discussed by theboard. As in years past, public and non-public transportation, adult education,health and welfare services to privateschools and excess cost grant caps will becapped.

Magnet school enrollments wouldmaintain their current enrollment withgrowth for such reasons as when a gradewas being added to a school. The boardseeks to restore the mentoring programstaff and seven agency wide staff.

Additionally, SBE is asking for $5million for each year of the biennium fornon Sheff area magnet schools. Manynews accounts have reported, SBE isseeking 4 new state charters, two localcharters and they previously approvedtwo state charters.

Finally, approval for an arts grant,FoodCorps grant and Developing Tomor-row’s Professionals program was given.SDE also operates the technical highschool system and their budget was alsodiscussed.


Documents

CABE Journal - Dec 2014