| 2010 Front Porch Forum Posts |
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Front Porch Forum December 21, 2010 Hi neighbors -- I'm writing to pass on the latest information from the School Board. Budget News -- The Burlington School Board held its December meeting last Tuesday. Although it was a fairly full agenda, the primary focus of the meeting was the proposed budget for FY11. The budget process was complicated this year by the legislature's passage of Challenges for Change (C4C), which proposed a statewide reduction in education spending of $23 million. The Burlington School District was given a target of a $1.8 million reduction from the current FY10 budget. The Board was instructed to inform the Commissioner of Education by December 15 as to whether it planned to meet the proposed target. Over the past year, the Board has taken a long and hard look at the District's budget. I appointed a Zero-Based Budget Task Force under the leadership of Ward 6 Commissioner Alan Matson to examine every line item in the District's budget. The ZBB Task Force's primary goals were to identify what items are mandated by state and federal law, and to make recommendations regarding possible areas for reduction or more efficient expenditure. After several months of hard work, the Task Force concluded that roughly 80% of the District's expenditures are mandated by law, and that the remaining 20% is devoted to those aspects of our District -- sports, music, art, etc. -- that contribute to a well-rounded education for our children. Parallel to the ZBB Task Force's work, the Administration was assessing the consequences of a budget that would meet the proposed C4C target. Based on the results of that assessment, the Board voted unanimously to inform the Commissioner of Education that Burlington will not meet the proposed target. In the Board's view, the impact of the cuts would have a devastating impact on the District's ability to provide the type of education that our children need to be competitive in a rapidly-changing economy. Moreover, unlike most districts in the state, enrollment in the Burlington School District is increasing -- over the last seven years, the school population in the city has risen 8% while the state as a whole has declined 10%. For FY11, the Board is proposing a budget of $53,391,029. That represents a 2.8% increase over the previous year's budget. The Board is aware of the challenges posed by the current economic climate, and has made some difficult personnel decisions to limit costs. For instance, a grant is currently funding $548,000 in student service positions, but the grant is ending. Those positions will be cut and not transferred to the local budget. We are extending the 20/20 retirement plan that we initiated last year, and expect to save $200,000 next year by doing so. Administrative costs will be cut by $100,000 and another $220,000 will be saved through reductions in special ed and behavioral specialist positions. The Board will hold its last budget hearing at 7pm on Tuesday, January 4 at Burlington High School. The draft budget will be presented to the City Council on January 10, and then the Board will adopt its proposed budget at its regular January meeting on the 11th. If you would like to comment on the budget, please attend one of those meetings. Construction News -- I had the honor last week of cutting the ribbon for Phase 1 of the Burlington High School theater renovation, which focused on repairs and improvements to the front of the house. The work pushed back the performances of the Drama Club's production of "Hello Dolly," but the wait was worth it. The theater looks great and the kids were as dynamic and entertaining as always. Phase 2 next summer will focus on improvements to the stage and theater infrastructure. Construction is just about finished on two schools, Smith Elementary and the Sustainability Academy (formerly Barnes). The reviews from teachers and students have been overwhelmingly positive (in fact, the work done on the Sustainability Academy was part of Lockheed Martin's decision to partner with the City of Burlington on energy efficiency). Over the coming years, the District expects the renovations to generate considerable savings in energy costs and maintenance. Planning is underway for work at Flynn Elementary, the third school covered by the $9.7 construction bond. Additional information about the scope of the work and the schedule will be available later in the spring. Lastly, the elevator at Edmunds Middle School is fully installed and the final details are being resolved. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for that project will be announced in January. Superintendent Contract -- This is also the time of the year that we evaluate the Superintendent's performance and make our decision regarding an extension. The Board met with Jeanne Collins last night to discuss the past year, and then voted unanimously to offer her an extension through June 30, 2013. A subcommittee of the Board will negotiate with the Superintendent regarding the terms of the extension. March 2011 Election -- The deadline for filing petitions to get on the ballot as a candidate for the School Board is 5pm on Monday, January 24. After much deliberation, I have decided to run for another term on the Board. It has been an honor to serve the residents of Ward 5 and the children of Burlington (including my own), and I hope to have the opportunity to do so again. I look forward to talking with voters about the issues facing the District, and to answering any questions you might have. As always, please feel free to contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or your other Ward 5 commissioner, Amy Werbel, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Happy Holidays to All! Fred Lane Ward 5 Commissioner and Board Chair 12 Catherine Street This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum November 10, 2010 Hi Neighbors - The Burlington School Board held its monthly meeting at Burlington High School last night. It was a busy evening, so I'll just give you the highlights: - After an executive session prior to the start of the meeting, the Board approved a one-year contract with the Burlington Administrators Association. Under the terms of the agreement, members will receive a flat pay increase of $1850. That represents an average increase of 1.5%. - Teachers Debra Blumberg, Ed Companion, and Eileen Siminger were recognized as Outstanding Teachers of the Year. - The Board congratuled Ward 4 Commissioner Philip Baruth on his election to the Vermont Senate, and said a fond farewell to Ward 3 Commissioner Vince Brennan, who was elected to a vacancy on the City Council and will begin serving immediately. - As Chair, I announced the membership of the Burlington School District Task Force on Diversity and Equity. This impressive group of community members is charged with reviewing the District's efforts to promote diversity and equity throughout the school system and to offer strategic planning for improvements. The Board views this initiative as a critical part of our efforts to effectively prepare Burlington students for the 21st-century work environment. The list of Task Force members will be posted shortly to the Burlington School District Web site (www.bsdvt.org). The report of the Task Force is due back in February, 2011. - The Board heard updates on all of the various construction projects taking place in schools across the city. Open houses will be announced in the near future to give community members an opportunity to see the work that has been done. I particularly recommend making plans to see the Burlington High School musical "Hello Dolly" in the renovated auditorium on December 16, 17, and 18. - Finance Chair Keith Pillsbury announced numerous public meetings to discuss the state Challenges for Change proposal and its potential impact on the Burlington school system. The Board must decide by December 15 whether it will attempt to meet the Commissioner of Education's proposed 2% budget reduction for the Burlington schools. A complete list of meeting dates and times is available on the District Web site. - The Board held a spirited discussion concerning a policy regulating the use of video surveillance equipment on school property. The policy permits the use of such surveillance, but places strict limits on access to the video feeds and recordings. It also instructs the Superintendent to install the fewest number of cameras necessary to carry out the safety goals of the policy. - The Board adopted a change to its enrollment policy, giving the Superintendent the authority to establish written procedures governing the possible admission of children to kindergarten who are under the age of 5 or 1st grade who are under the age of 6, provided their birthday is prior to January 1 of the school year (as required by state law). Prior to last night, BSD policy used September 1 as the cut-off and provided for no exceptions. The administration will draft its procedures in time for next year's enrollment period. - For the last two years, the School District has been negotiating with the City over a possible integration of the Burlington City Kids and the BSD afterschool program. A Burlington Kids Collaborative Management Team was created to resolve the issue and last night, the Board passed a resolution adopting its recommendations. The Board also urges the City to do the same. - Lastly, the Board approved the final motion of outgoing Commissioner Vince Brennan to name the newly renovated kitchen at the Sustainability Academy after Melissa Parker, the popular food service worker who died suddenly last fall. The Sustainability Academy PTO will make arrangements for a commemorative plaque to be installed in the kitchen. If anyone has any questions or would like additional information, please feel free to contact me or your other Ward 5 School Commissioner, Amy Werbel ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Regards, Fred Lane Ward 5 School Commissioner and Board Chair 12 Catherine Street This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum September 30, 2010 Commissioner's Corner - North Avenue News Hi neighbors -- The latest edition of North Avenue News contains a column I wrote for the Commissioner's Corner feature. I thought I'd circulate it for those of you who might not get the paper: "As the weather gets cooler and the days get shorter, the Burlington School Board is hunkering down to begin its work on the budget proposal that it will submit to the voters on Town Meeting Day (March 1, 2011). It may seem like we're getting underway a little earlier this year, and we are. As many of you no doubt recall, last year the Vermont legislature and the Douglas administration agreed that $23.2 million should be cut from the state education fund (the so-called "Challenges for Change"). In order to meet that target, Commissioner of Education Armando Villeseca has asked districts across the state to reduce their school budgets by an average of 2.34 percent. The Board must tell Commissioner Villeseca by December 15 if our FY12 budget will meet the proposed target. According to a formula developed by the Vt. Department of Education, the Burlington School District is being asked to cut approximately $1.1 million from its current budget, despite the fact that we already have one of the lowest per-pupil spending rates in the state. (In fact, if every district spent what we spend on our students, there would be no need for an education fund reduction.) Given the leanness of the Burlington school budget, a $1.1 million reduction will profoundly affect the services and programs that our students and their parents expect as part of a well-rounded, college preparatory education. Over the next several weeks, committees of the Board will be meeting to assess the impact of the proposed cuts on the Burlington schools, and to craft a fiscally-responsible budget that reflects the values of the city's voters. The Board plans to hold a number of public sessions to explain to the public the possible impact of Challenges for Change and to solicit feedback for the budget-drafting process. Despite the economic difficulties that we face both statewide and in our city, it is important that we strive to preserve the best possible quality education for our children, so that they can effectively prepare for the challenges and changes that they will face." Please let me know if you have any questions or comments. Commissioner Amy Werbel ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) and I will keep you posted on upcoming meeting dates. Additional information is available on the District Web site ( http://www.bsdvt.org ). Regards, Fred Lane Ward 5 School Commissioner and Board Chair 12 Catherine Street 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum May 25, 2010 Hi Neighbors -- As you may have seen in the newspaper this morning, the School Board voted unanimously last night to confirm the appointments of Thom Fleury as principal of Hunt Middle School and Marcie Lewis as principal of C.P. Smith. The vote followed 45 minutes of additional public comment about the hiring process. A large number of people turned out to talk about their participation in the principal searches, and to express their strong belief that the two candidates were selected because of their outstanding qualifications. Several speakers said that Thom and Marcy had particularly impressed interviewers with their understanding of the diverse needs of the students in the two schools, and their commitment to the goals of cultural competence and understanding. Although it was clear from the comments that many found the Board's two-week delay unsettling or upsetting, I think that the time was well spent. It gave new board members (five since November) the opportunity to get a crash-course in the District's hiring process, and to hear directly from members of the community about the large number of volunteer hours that were devoted by teachers and parents to ensuring a thoughtful, thorough, and fair hiring process. As some of the Board members said during our discussion, their vote to delay was not intended to show skepticism towards the recommended candidates, but to make sure that each Board member had enough information about the hiring process to feel comfortable supporting Superintendent Collins's recommendation. As the unanimous vote to affirm demonstrates, that goal was accomplished. Those who supported the vote to table should be commended for their thoughtfulness about their supervisory role and their collegiality towards their fellow Board members. I would like to thank everyone who took the time to contribute to the principal search and the time to report to the Board on how the process unfolded. Such feedback is essential to good decision-making at the policy level. But we also need feedback in the early stages of a hiring process. Currently, we are looking for applicants for the open principal position as the Integrated Arts Academy. The initial applicant pool is small, so the search for candidates has been extended into the early part of June. The Board and administration would welcome any suggestions of names of potentially qualified individuals, or pointers to social or professional networks where it would be good to advertise the position. Given that IAA is one of Vermont's first two magnet schools and is receiving national attention, it is particularly important that we find a dynamic leader to build on the work of out-going principal Joyce Irvine. The Board's next regularly-scheduled meeting is Tuesday, June 8 at the Burlington High School. Please feel free to contact me or your other Ward 5 School Commissioner, Amy Werbel ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ), if you have any comments or questions. Regards, Fred Lane Ward 5 School Commissioner and Board Chair This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum May 13, 2010 Hi neighbors -- I think that we set a record for school board meetings last Tuesday, with a Finance committee meeting at 5:30, an executive session for the Board at 6, and a monthly meeting that adjourned at 12:45am on Wednesday. Kudos to our new student members, Deniz Sehovic and Colin Gliech, who sat through all or nearly all of the proceedings, and offered some very insightful comments. A tip of the hat as well to the unbelievably patient RETN staff, who filmed the entire meeting and still had to pack up all their equipment in the wee hours. Before I give a brief summary of the bulk of the meeting, let's start with some great news. One of the final items that the Board dealt with was approval of the bid for the installation of the elevator at Edmunds Middle School. Site work will start in the basement of the building before the end of the month, and intensive work will get underway as soon as school is finished in mid-June. The project is scheduled to finish before the start of school in September and I am looking forward to a ribbon-cutting, button-pushing ceremony. We will continue to work to improve accessibility in the Edmunds complex, but this is a great milestone. Much of the Board's attention was devoted to the recommendations by the Superintendent to appoint two new principals at C.P. Smith Elementary and Lyman C. Hunt Middle School. As many or most of you are aware, there has been a lot of community activism around the issue of diversity in the Burlington school district recently, and prior to the meeting, a number of people wrote to express concern about the fact that neither of the individuals recommended for the two openings is a person of color. As expected, there was a large turn-out of community members on Tuesday at the Board meeting, and roughly 40 addressed the Board. It is worth noting that approximately half of the people who spoke at public comment were teachers with concerns about the ongoing contract negotiations, a topic which will require another lengthy post down the road. The balance spoke on the issue of diversity, their concerns about the process employed by the District, their belief that there has been a lack of transparency, and their disappointment with the outcome. The amount of disinformation and confusion around this issue is discouraging. There has been no lack of process or absence of transparency on the part of the Board or District. Over the last two years, the Board and administration has held numerous meetings with members of the community, has drafted and adopted the Board's Diversity goals in numerous open-session meetings (many of which were devoted exclusively to the issue of diversity and well-attended), and has held hours of interviews that were attended by and participated in by members of the respective school communities. At every level of the process, the Board and the administration have been working towards three goals: an increase in the diversity of the District's hiring pool, education of the individuals involved in the hiring process to understand the importance of diversity and the hidden biases with which we all wrestle, and the creation of an overall environment that will increase the likelihood that the District can retain teachers of color who are hired and choose to come here. The Board will hold a special meeting on May 24 at 5:00p.m. at the Ira Allen Building to thoroughly discuss the principal hiring process and the way in which it was applied to all of the individuals in the hiring pool. It is almost certainly true that there are things that can be done differently or more effectively that will enable the District to attract a more diverse pool of qualified applicants. However, the fact that the District's hiring process (or any public process, for that matter) can be improved does not mean that it was fundamentally flawed, nor that the results of the hiring process are invalid. On the 24th, the Board will take the time to insure that the administration made a genuine effort to implement the Board's diversity goals and that the process was fair for all. As someone who has spent many, many hours working with people of good conscience in the District to improve the conditions for promoting diversity in our schools, I am confident that the administration has made and will continue to make substantial progress on this issue. I am proud of the work that they have done, and hope that we can use this as a teachable moment for us all. If anyone has any questions or would like additional information, please contact me or my fellow Ward 5 school commissioner, Amy Werbel ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Regards, Fred Lane Ward 5 School Commissioner and Board Chair This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum May 9, 2010 Hi neighbors -- With May showers (and snow flurries -- really??) dampening the first Farmer's Market, it seemed like a good morning to sit down and write an update regarding the Burlington schools. Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 11, at 7 p.m. at Burlington High School. Here's a run-down of some of the issues the Board has been dealing with recently: On Thursday, the full Board met for its annual Spring retreat. There were three items on the agenda: a Board self-assessment, a goal-setting session for the upcoming year, and an opportunity for Board members to talk more generally about why they ran for the Board and the issues in which they are interested. During its discussion, the Board identified three main areas of concentration for the coming year: 1) BHS 20/20, the planning process to upgrade the high school to continue to meet accreditation standards and 21st century educational goals; 2) Increasing the diversity and cultural competence of the staff and faculty of the Burlington School District; and 3) Improving the processes for evaluating and holding staff and faculty accountable for concrete progress on District goals, including implementation of the District's Hallmarks of Excellence. The focus on these areas, of course, is not to the exclusion of other areas of concern, including facility improvements, District finances, and teacher negotiations, all of which will demand a lot of time and attention this year. As many of you are aware, much of our attention over the last few weeks has been concentrated on dealing with the surprisingly large number of incoming kindergarten students in the South End of the city. According to the District's most recent figures (and it's only May!), next year's kindergarten class will be the largest in 11 years, which means that the District must creatively make use of nearly all of its building capacity. Over the coming months, the Board and the District administration will be looking closely at the tools used to predict student enrollment, so that we can hold earlier discussions with the community about possible school choices and assignments. We will also need to strategize options for future years should our enrollment increase further. Over the last several weeks, Superintendent Collins and Director of Operations Terry Bailey led a search for a new District Business Manager to replace Scott Lisle, who is retiring after a lengthy career with the District. At Tuesday's meeting, Supt. Collins is planning to recommend to the Board that it hire Mike Gilbar, an experienced business manager who is currently the Chief Financial Officer for the City of Nashua, NH. If approved, Mr. Gilbar's primary task will be to familiarize himself with the District's financial operations and recommend improvements. He will also be charged with assisting in the District's ongoing strategic planning, including enrollment forecasts. We take seriously the need to bring our budget under strict control in light of many pressing and immediate challenges. The Board will also be considering two other recommendations on Tuesday night: Thom Fleury as principal at C.P. Smith Elementary School, and Marcie Lewis as principal of Hunt Middle School. The two candidates were chosen after an extensive hiring process designed to expand the District's hiring pool, gauge the cultural competence of prospective hires, evaluate their professional credentials and qualifications, and receive input from the respective school communities. Thom, a former Board member who resigned prior to the start of the hiring process, was selected as a finalist by both schools. Given the diverse make-up of the Burlington student body, both the Board and administration recognize the importance of faculty and administrators who are sensitive to the disparate experiences and needs of its students and to the extent possible, reflect the varied cultural backgrounds of the students. With the help and input of community members from across the city, the Board and the administration have been working on changes to the District's hiring process, including improved outreach and networking to promote a more diverse hiring pool, developing and implementing standards for cultural competency by which to gauge applicants, and training of all individuals in the hiring process to raise awareness of these issues. It is a valuable and informative process that will benefit Burlington school children. The Board appreciates the assistance of community members in making sure that we locate and hire the most highly-qualified and culturally competent instructors and administrators available. The lessons learned over the spring will be applied to the District's next principal search. Last week, Supt. Collins announced that Joyce Irvine, principal of the Integrated Arts Academy, has accepted the position of School Improvement Coordinator, a position now required for the District by No Child Left Behind. The District will be launching a national search for her replacement. Like our other principal hiring processes there will be plenty of opportunity for parent input, so if you have a child going to the IAA next year, please contact our superintendent to let her know that you are interested in participating. Wishing everyone a pleasant spring, Fred Lane Ward 5 Board member and Board Chair 12 Catherine Street This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum April 7, 2010 Hi neighbors -- Last Thursday, the School Board held its annual reorganization meeting. I was re-elected Chair for the coming year and Kathy Chasan (Ward 1) was re-elected as Board Clerk. As part of the reorganization, the Chair appoints the members of the school board to one or more committees. You can view the complete committee rosters here: http://j.mp/dgRTTD. The Board holds its monthly meeting on the 2d Tuesday of each month at 7pm at BHS. The committee meeting times are as follows: Finance -- 1st Tuesday, 5pm, at the Ira Allen building on Colchester Ave. Infrastructure & Technology -- 1st Tuesday, 7pm, same location Curriculum -- 3rd Tuesday, 5pm, same location Policy & Advocacy -- 3rd Tuesday, 7pm, same location Agenda -- 4th Tuesday, 5pm, same location Other ad hoc committees, task forces, etc. meet on an as-needed basis. All meetings are open to the public and comments are welcome. Please feel free to contact me or Commissioner Amy Werbel ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) if you have any questions or need additional information. Fred Lane Ward 5 School Commissioner This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 802-318-4604 Frederick Lane Front Porch Forum March 6, 2010 Dear Neighbors -- On behalf of the Burlington School Board, I would like to express my appreciation to the voters of Burlington for once again supporting the school budget on Town Meeting Day. It is an honor to represent a community that so consistently demonstrates its commitment to a quality education for its children. As most of you are undoubtedly aware, the financial challenges that have made the last couple of years so difficult are not likely to ease significantly in the coming months. The Board will continue its efforts to contain costs for the District in a responsible manner, while still maintaining the quality of education that Burlington residents expect from their schools. As part of that process, Commissioner Alan Matson (Ward 6) will be leading an ad-hoc committee to undertake a zero-based budget review of the District's revenues and expenditures. The meetings are open to the public, and periodic updates will be posted to Front Porch Forum. The committee will present its conclusions and recommendations in time for the administration and Board Finance committee to incorporate them into the FY12 budget process in the fall. There are two other issues that will garner significant attention in the months to come. The first is the Board's negotiations with the Burlington Education Association for a new contract. The Board requested and the teachers agreed to conduct those negotiations in public this year, as part of the Board's ongoing efforts to increase transparency and accountability to the voters. Copies of the current proposals from each side are available on the District Web site (http://www.bsdvt.org), as well as meeting dates and times. The District is fortunate to have an excellent pool of teachers, and we look forward to working with them to reach an agreement that balances the competing demands of fair compensation and fiscal prudence. The second issue is just beginning to percolate, but it is one that will have long-term implications for the City and its students. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has identified a number of deficiencies in Burlington High School that need to be addressed in order for the building to retain its accreditation. Thanks in large part to the increase in the capital improvement bond that the voters approved last year, a number of improvements at the high school (new science labs, a renovated auditorium, etc.), are either in the works or scheduled over the next couple of years. However, a more comprehensive retrofit is required to bring the 46-year-old building up to contemporary standards. Under the leadership of Principal Amy Mellencamp, the high school is undertaking a visioning process to plan the necessary upgrades and improvements. Over the coming months and years, all segments of Burlington -- teachers, students, administrators, taxpayers, civic leaders, and the business community -- will be asked for their thoughts and suggestions. The goal is to design and implement changes that will give enable our students to excel in an increasingly competitive world. Finally, I would like to thank our three outgoing Board members -- Sandy Flemer (Ward 2), Sam Osborne (Ward 6), and Thom Fleury (Ward 7) -- for their valuable contributions to the Board over the last several years, and to welcome their replacements -- Matt Conger (Ward 2), Jill Evans (Ward 6), and Haik Bedrosian (Ward 7). After the Board reorganization on Thursday, April 1 (7:00 p.m. at Burlington High School), you will be able to contact the new Board members (and all returning and current commissioners) through the school district Web site. We welcome all comments and suggestions on how to best maintain and improve the Burlington schools. Thanks again, Fred Lane Chair, Burlington School Board Ward 5 Commissioner 802-318-4604 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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