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| Yes, There are! |
I watched approximately five minutes of this week's School Committee Meeting and two highlights came screaming out at me:
1) The always-on-the-ball Kaitlin Meiss assisting Mrs. Kangas with her budget. Note: If you can't contain your facial expressions, you should slip the camera man a few bucks to swing the lens away a little faster when you're done talking! Kangas is in good hands with Kaitlin -- this is her third ride through the budget circus!
2) A motion by Linehan to review several years of SPED legal invoices. The amusing thing is that she should already be looking at those invoices every week when she approves the warrants for payment. Either she is not doing her job by not signing warrants, OR she is not doing her job by signing warrants without reviewing the underlying documentation.
Since the Administration has already supplied a summary of the relevant disbursements, which was never questioned, I think the more likely answer is that Jess has absolutely no idea of what she's asking about. I would suspect the point of the exercise is to point out that any savings in SPED costs have resulted in increased legal costs. Duh! Given the astronomical costs of out-of-district placements, there absolutely needs to be a legal review to ensure the District is providing appropriate legally-required services in the most cost-effective manner.
I would be far more interested in asking for details on legal expenditures related to Union Grievances, Union Contract Negotiations, and the Johnson and Minkoff lawsuits. Nobody seemed worried about those!
3 comments:
I was just told I missed another highlight -- somebody got up to suggest that I be charged for NOT returning a School Committee policy manual.
I would point out that although my copy has been returned, few others ever have been.
Far more importantly, the School Committee doesn't have a secret rule book! The policy manual is a public document that is available to any taxpayer upon request.
Wouldn't it be amusing if 15 taxpayers walked in and asked for their own personal copy tomorrow morning?
I hope that wasn't the speaker's opening speech of the 2011 Cammpaign!
The policy manual that Bob did not return on time is maintained as a “word file” on the School’s computer system. Apparently, nobody understands or knows what a PRINT key does on a computer keyboard. Amazing.
And, apparently, nobody on the Committee realizes that these “files” can also be easily passed electronically without the need to print anything - Amazing!
Based on comments made during the last meeting, Mrs Kangas and Mrs Crossman do not know the difference between the columns labeled “budgeted” and “expended” on the budget report. Amazing. They cant actually read or understand a budget but they’re “in charge.”
No wonder Nancy did such a fine job overseeing the Community School finances.
Marie really wasnt kidding when she said “I gut nufin.”
Mrs Linehan’s primary job as a Committee member is to approve bills (and sign them to evidence her review). Why is she asking to review 2 years of bills she’s already reviewed and approved? Amazing!
Is Mrs Linehan’s second review of the Special ed legal bills going to tap her vast knowledge of accounting and finance or her deep professional experiences with nuances of MA law?
Bob - is there any history to Linehan's vendetta against special education? I would love to better understand why she keeps going after successful programs in the district that have been awarded grant after grant. Does she really not understand that if she cuts these programs the cost of out-of-district placements will skyrocket?
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